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Photo by Matt McNulty - The FA/The FA via Getty Images
The 30 year old forward will still travel to the World Cup as an alternate.
In a disappointing turn of events, Liverpool forward Shanice van de Sanden was not included in the final squad chosen to represent Netherlands at the upcoming Women’s World Cup.
The 30 year old forward will still travel alongside goalkeeper Barbara Lorsheyd as an alternate should anyone become injured before the start of the tournament, but was passed over in favor of Everton’s Katja Snoeijs and Arsenal’s Victoria Pelova as a nailed on squad member.
Truly the news is most disappointing because Netherlands will be without their leading goal scorer in Vivianne Miedema, as she is still recovering from the ACL tear she suffered back in December of 2022. While van de Sanden may have had what some could call a disappointing season with Liverpool - only 14 appearances and one goal - her experience on the international stage would’ve been incredibly useful. Especially since they are including their youngest ever World Cup player in Wieke Kaptein, who is only 17.
Liverpool will now only have two players to watch in the World Cup - Niamh Fahey will be representing the Republic of Ireland, and Fuka Nagano will be representing Japan.
This will be Netherlands’ third world cup appearance and they will almost certainly be looking for redemption after finishing as runners up in 2019 to the USWNT. Van de Sanden may yet still have a role to play, but her attacking acumen and agility on the wing will be definitely missed.
