England squad numbers for Women's World Cup 2023 as Alessia Russo hint dropped

England have now officially revealed the squad numbers for their players ahead of the upcoming Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. With the tournament kicking off in less than three weeks, Sarina Wiegman's 23-player squad was announced in May and the squad numbers were formally announced on Monday.

Fans were given a glimpse of the numbers the Lionesses will be wearing on the back of their shirts at the World Cup last weekend, when England played their final warm-up game on home soil against Portugal in Milton Keynes. The Lionesses drew 0-0 but the contest offered Wiegman's squad the chance to get some crucial game time under their belts ahead of the trip to the southern hemisphere.

Aside from striker Bethany England, all players have been assigned the same squad number as the ones used against Portugal. While Wiegman admitted after Saturday's clash she was no closer to knowing her World Cup starting XI, Monday's announcement does perhaps give an insight into the head coach's thinking, reports the Mirror.

The biggest revelation is that Rachel Daly takes the number nine shirt, indicating the Aston Villa striker could be preferred to former Manchester United striker Alessia Russo up front at this summer's tournament. That was the case against Portugal, when Russo came on to replace Daly after the interval.

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Furthermore, the fact that Chelsea defender Niamh Charles - who also came on as a substitute at Stadium MK - will wear the number three could suggest the full-back may be regarded as a starter by Wiegman this summer.

With the squad numbers now confirmed, England will be hoping to make a strong start to the tournament