LONDON: England women’s national team captain Millie Bright remains optimistic about her chances of returning to full fitness in time for the start of the Lionesses’ World Cup campaign next month. The Chelsea defender has been recovering from knee surgery and has not played for club or country since March.
Despite her absence from the pitch, Bright was selected as the captain for England’s upcoming tournament in Australia and New Zealand. This decision came after Leah Williamson suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury, ruling her out of the competition.
While Bright will not be participating in the warm-up friendly against Portugal this Saturday, she aims to be ready for England’s opening game of the group stage against Haiti on July 22 in Brisbane.
Millie Bright Confident of Her Recovery
Speaking to reporters, Bright expressed confidence in her recovery progress, stating, “I think we are a little bit ahead (of schedule) actually. Coming into it, there’s a big chunk of time before the first game, so we’re really confident and everything is going exactly the way we wanted it to go.”
Rather than dwelling on the extended period of inactivity due to her injury, the 29-year-old sees it as an opportunity to rest and rejuvenate after a demanding 12 months. Bright played a crucial role in England’s victory at the Euro 2022 tournament held on home soil last summer and helped Chelsea secure the Women’s Super League and FA Cup double.
Reflecting on her recovery period, Bright shared, “I think the amount of minutes I’ve played leading up to this has been ridiculous, through the roof, so if anything I feel mentally and physically fresher than I’ve ever felt… It’s been a fair few years now. A blessing in disguise I call it, that I’ve mentally and physically been able to completely just have a clean slate and let my body recover.”
