England boss Wiegman confirms Russo to miss Scotland fixture | OneFootball

England head coach Sarina Wiegman has announced the news that Arsenal forward Alessia Russo will not be available for selection for the Scotland game.

The Lionesses open their UEFA Women’s Nations League campaign with a fixture against The Tartan Army at The Stadium of Light in Sunderland on Friday night.

Arsenal forward Russo reported to St George’s Park after her England teammates with the player being given extra time to rest. When speaking in the pre-match press conference ahead of the Scotland fixture, England boss Wiegman advised that Russo will not be available for selection for the match.

“She’s fine, she’s good but before camp I had a conversation with her and I decided that she needed a little more rest,” Wiegman said.

“She came in yesterday, she won’t be available for tomorrow and we are preparing for her to be available on Tuesday (against The Netherlands).”

Russo returned to club football just weeks after the FIFA Women’s World Cup final with Arsenal having participated in Round 1 of the UEFA Women’s Champions League. Wiegman said that Russo needs the extra rest for physical and mental reasons and emphasised the importance of player welfare.

She said “She’s a human-being and it is physical and mental, you can’t view them separately. We had a conversation and as I always say, we have a team programme and we modify individually.

“With the games coming up, we talked about the calendar. It is such a short turnaround that you have conversations with players, monitor them and you get a feeling for them. You have conversations and you become aware of things. I made the decision that it was not right (to select her), she really needs a couple of days’ rest which means that she won’t be available for Scotland.

“You want to perform at the highest level and players need to perform at the highest level. You have to do what’s right and take care of players too.”

England’s UEFA Women’s Nations League fixture against Scotland in Sunderland kicks-off at 7.45pm on Friday night.