Lionesses squad: Sarina Wiegman without five England stars for USA and Switzerland friendlies

Five regular names have been left out of Sarina Wiegman’s latest Lionesses squad due to injury.

The England manager on Tuesday named her 24-player squad for friendlies against the United States at Wembley on November 30 and Switzerland at Sheffield United’s Bramall Lane on December 3.

Wiegman has been unable to select regulars Lauren James, Niamh Charles, Lauren Hemp, Lucy Parker and Ella Toone, with all five missing out due to injury. Manchester City confirmed on Tuesday that Hemp had undergone knee surgery.

There are first call-ups at senior level for Manchester City’s Laura Blindkilde Brown and Leicester’s Ruby Mace, both of whom previously represented England at Under-23 level.

Gabby George, the Manchester United defender, is included in a senior squad for the first time since November 2022.

Matches against the US and the Swiss round off the calendar year for the Lionesses, who will be the defending champions at next summer’s European Championship in Switzerland.

England’s path to next summer’s tournament was made clearer last week when the Lionesses were drawn in Group A3 of the Women’s Nations League alongside Spain, Belgium and Portugal. The draw for the Euros itself is set for December 16.

Wiegman said: “This is an important international window for us to continue our work to be ready for next summer. Every minute of these two games and every moment spent together at St George’s Park is to make sure we’re where we need to be when the tournament begins on 2 July.”