'She's doing well' - England given World Cup boost as Keira Walsh returns to full training ahead of Nigeria clash

England received a boost ahead of their last 16 clash with Nigeria at the Women’s World Cup after Keira Walsh returned to full training.

Walsh was dealt a blow against Denmark in the second round of group fixtures when she was stretchered off after awkwardly twisting her knee when sliding to gather a loose ball.

She immediately indicated to the bench she wouldn’t be able to continue, sparking fears that she could have ruptured her ACL and would therefore miss the rest of the tournament.

But word from inside the England camp was positive, revealing that no damage had been done to Walsh’s ACL and raising hopes she could yet feature for the Lionesses as they bid to win the World Cup for the first time.

The Barcelona midfielder returned to individual training on Friday and has now been reintegrated with the squad ahead of their clash with Nigeria for a place in the quarter-finals.

“She’s doing well,” manager Sarina Wiegman said during her press conference.

“She started her rehab straight after we knew what was going on and she has been on the pitch, she has been training today.

“Now we wait for how she recovers from that training session and if she does well, she’s available for tomorrow.”

England won all three of their group games, culminating in a 6-1 demolition of China as Wiegman switched things up to accommodate for the loss of Walsh.

But the Lionesses will be buoyed by the prospect of having the midfielder available again.

Walsh, who joined Barcelona last summer for a women’s world record transfer fee of £350,000, played a crucial role in England’s stunning Euro 2022 triumph and fans will hope she can have a similar impact in the knockout stages of the World Cup.

The Lionesses will have their work cut out against Nigeria, though, who have been one of the standout teams of the tournament thus far, finishing above Olympic champions Canada as they went unbeaten in the group stage.

It promises to be a fascinating encounter which kicks off on Monday, August 7 in Brisbane at 08:30 UK time.

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