SPAIN WOMEN'S NATIONAL TEAM
Alexia returns to training with Barcelona: will she play at the World Cup 2023 in Australia?
The Ballon d’Or holder took part in training with the rest of the FC Barcelona squad for the first time since her injury in June 2022.
Good things come to those who wait. And my, oh my, has Alexia had to wait. The midfielder, who tore her ACL on 6 June 2022, on the eve of Euro 2022, continues to take positive steps in her recovery. Almost nine months after the injury, Alexia has finally returned to training with the rest of the Barcelona team as she looks ahead to possibly making the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
It is an important step in the recovery process and little by little she will try to take part in more sessions and exercises until she feels fully fit to train as normal. Only then will it be time to think about getting back across the white line.
Alexia remains patient about her return
“I’m happy to move onto the next stage of my recovery, to go back to training with the team and I’m happy”, Alexia told club media, “you go back to feeling how you felt before, when you weren’t injured. Now it’s about patience and work. We’re starting a new stage, which is training progressively with the group, getting back to form and giving all I can to achieve the objectives.”
For now, Alexia’s recovery is going swimmingly, as she said. “It’s going well, really well. The doctors, who are the ones who know what they’re talking about, all say it’s going well. I feel good. Now we’re starting a new phase and I’m excited to be available to the squad, but this decided by the doctors and my knee. We’ll see how it reacts.”
Will Alexia be back in time for the World Cup?
In terms of the nine months she’s been out of action, the world’s best player explained that it’s been a tough mental ride: “there are moments of everything: it’s an injury that affects you mentally, it’s a lot of time out and you have ups and downs, niggles, things about your body that you don’t understand; you start to know yourself better than ever. From minute one I said that everything happens for a reason and it’s true with this and now let’s see what this brings me.
Jorge Vilda’s penultimate squad before the World Cup will be announced on Friday. Of course, Alexia is not expected to make it and it is as yet unclear who will feature, as the 15 players who wrote to the RFEF to ask not to be selected have been across the headlines this month regarding a possible return, although nothing has been confirmed. We will have to see if Alexia makes the cut for the summer tournament.