Sophie Ingle has been included in the 23-member Wales squad for Euro 2025 in Switzerland after winning a race against time and recovering from the anterior cruciate ligament rupture sustained last September.
That knee injury sidelined the much-decorated 33-year-old midfielder, who will leave Chelsea this summer, for the entire domestic season but her return to fitness represents a significant boost to Welsh hopes of exceeding expectations in their first major tournament.
Rhian Wilkinson’s squad – 30th in Fifa’s rankings – have been placed in a tough initial group alongside the Netherlands, France and England but their capacity to cause an upset is boosted by the presence of their record scorer and cap-holder, Jess Fishlock, alongside Ingle in midfield.
Although now 38, Fishlock is still going strong in the United States at Seattle Reign and, as the undoubted star of the team, cannot be underestimated by even the best opponents. She and Ingle will be joined by her Reign teammate Angharad James, the Wales captain, in a formidable-looking midfield. The trio hold 432 international caps.
It also helps that Wilkinson, who is half-Welsh, is no tactical slouch. The 43-year-old former 183-cap Canada defender managed Portland Thorns to the NWSL title in the US in 2022 and served as a highly regarded assistant coach with Canada’s and England’s women.
Since her arrival in February 2024 Wales have only once lost by more than a goal but scoring freely can remain a problem. The hope is that this can be remedied by the return to full fitness of the prolific Crystal Palace striker Elise Hughes after her second ACL rupture.
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Wales squad
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Olivia Clark (Leicester), Safia (correct) Middleton-Patel (Manchester United), Poppy Soper (unattached), Charlie Estcourt (DC Power), Gemma Evans (Liverpool), Josie Green (Crystal Palace), Hayley Ladd (Everton), Esther Morgan (Sheffield United), Ella Powell (Bristol City), Rhiannon Roberts (unattached), Lily Woodham (Seattle Reign), Jess Fishlock (Seattle Reign), Alice Griffiths (Unattached), Ceri Holland (Liverpool), Sophie Ingle (unattached), Angharad James (Seattle Reign), Lois Joel (Newcastle), Rachel Rowe (Southampton), Kayleigh Barton (unattached), Hannah Cain (Leicester), Elise Hughes (Crystal Palace), Carrie Jones (IFK Norkoping), Ffion Morgan (Bristol City).
Wilkinson, flanked by the Leicester goalkeeper Olivia Clark and the unattached former Real Betis defender Rhiannon Roberts, climbed to the top of Yr Wyddfa, previously known as Snowdon, on Thursday morning before naming her Switzerland-bound party from the mountain’s summit. Squad announcements can rarely have been so innovative, or camera-friendly.
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On Sunday the players will fly to Portugal for a week’s training on the Algarve before arriving at their base in Lipperswil in north-east Switzerland, between Zurich and St Gallen and close to Lake Constance.
With more than 2,000 Wales fans attending the team’s matches in Lucerne (against the Netherlands) and St Gallen (against France and England), the tournament’s lowest-ranked side are poised to be among the best-supported teams in Switzerland.