The Netherlands women’s national team suffered a blow to its 2023 World Cup hopes as star striker Vivianne Miedema went down with a torn ACL.

The injury, which she sustained last Thursday while playing for Women’s Super League club Arsenal, adds her name to the long list of top players who have suffered knee injuries this year.

In a statement Monday announcing the nature of her injury, she ruled herself out for next summer’s World Cup, which is just 213 days away.

“I won’t be able to help my team anymore this season, no World Cup, surgery and rehab for a long time,” she said.

Miedema is the all-time leading scorer for the Netherlands women’s team, with 95 goals in 115 international appearances. This year, she had 10 goals through 11 appearances; in 2021, 15 goals in 13 appearances.

She played a big role in the Netherlands’ run to the World Cup final in 2019, scoring three goals in the tournament. Just one other Dutch player, Lieke Martens, scored more than one goal in the tournament, in which the Netherlands fell to the USWNT in the championship match.

Miedema’s absence could create more problems for the Netherlands than just a hole in their offense. She also provides a veteran presence for a team that has undergone many changes since that 2019 run.

In 2021, manager Sarina Wiegman departed for the England women’s national team. Mark Parsons succeeded her in the position, but his tenure was short-lived. The team crashed out in the quarterfinals of the Euros in July, and Parsons and the team parted ways soon afterward.

“In the run-up to and at the European Championship, both the games shown and the results were disappointing and we cannot afford that,” KNVB board member Jan Dirk van der Zee said. “The bar is high. The Netherlands was defending champion and also a finalist at the last World Cup, we want to participate for the prizes.”

The issues with Parsons, though, seemingly run deeper than the Euros run. When Danielle van de Donk was asked after the Euros loss what she had learned with Parsons at the helm, she said she would “think about that.”

In his place, Andries Jonker was named head coach. He’ll lead the team in the World Cup in a group that includes the USWNT and Vietnam.

The quarterfinal loss in the Euros had marked the return of Miedema, who missed most of the tournament with COVID-19. She later wrote about the difficulties of the tournament, including playing the full 120 minutes in the quarterfinal against France after she had spent days in bed with a fever.

That tournament became the catalyst for Miedema’s decision to take a step back from the pitch in November, but she had come back rejuvenated before she suffered her ACL injury.

Vivianne Miedema has ruptured her ACL, she announced Monday, adding her name to the growing list of top-tier players who have torn knee ligaments.

“Absolutely gutted to share I’ve ruptured my ACL in our last game against Lyon,” Miedema wrote. “It was one of those moments where I knew straight away.”

The striker, who stars for Arsenal and for the Dutch women’s national team, did not provide a firm timeline for her recovery. But she said it would be “a long time” before she would return to the pitch, and she ruled herself out for the 2023 World Cup.

“I won’t be able to help my team anymore this season, no World Cup, surgery and rehab for a long time,” she continued. “I won’t be telling you I’ll come back stronger or that I’m looking forward to spend the next however many months in the gym.

“It will be tough with plenty of difficult days (plenty of crying, which we’ve had a lot of already), but sadly enough it’s part of football.”

Arsenal said in a statement that Miedema will undergo surgery “in the coming days.”

“[She] will unfortunately be ruled out for an extended period of time. A more detailed timescale will be established once the operation is complete,” the Women’s Super League club said. “Everyone at Arsenal wishes Viv well in her recovery and will be providing her with all the support she needs to return to action as soon as possible.”

Miedema joins her girlfriend and Arsenal teammate Beth Mead on the ACL injury list. Miedema suffered her injury last Thursday during Arsenal’s Champions League match against Lyon and had to be stretchered off the field.

With the Dutch star’s injury, 25 percent of the 2022 Ballon d’Or Féminin nominees are sidelined with ACL injuries, including winner Alexia Putellas. The USWNT has also been hit hard by ACL injuries, with both Catarina Macario and Christen Press sidelined.

Miedema is one of the top strikers in the game, having scored 78 goals in 97 league appearances for Arsenal.

She just recently made her return to the field after taking a break in November. Upon her return, she went on a tear, scoring four goals in four games to help Arsenal to second place in the Women’s Super League standings.

Miedema has been vocal in criticizing the packed playing calendar as a contributing factor in the recent rash of injuries. On Saturday, FIFA announced that it will be adding even more to the women’s calendar, introducing a women’s Club World Cup in 2025.

Vivianne Miedema became the latest top women’s soccer player to sustain a knee injury, as the star striker left Arsenal’s Champions League match Thursday on a stretcher.

The 26-year-old went to the turf after she landed awkwardly on her left leg in the first half of the 1-0 loss to Lyon. Before the injury, she had been on a tear, scoring four goals in four matches for the Gunners.

“I have no information at all yet,” Arsenal coach Jonas Eidevall said after the match. “It’s just the concern I have here now after the game, and that’s where a lot of my thoughts are at the moment to be honest.”

The club has not provided further details on the injury. Miedema is set to see a knee specialist for further evaluation.

Miedema had taken a break from the sport in November to rest and recuperate. The Dutch star had credited the step back from the sport with her rejuvenated play since her return.

Also since her return, she had been vocal about the need for rest, for herself and for all athletes.

Miedema contracted COVID-19 this summer, which kept her out of several matches at the Euros tournament. After she returned from COVID-19, she jumped straight into training for the Women’s Super League season.

“I just didn’t feel mentally and physically ready to actually play,” she said. “I think you could see that in the way that I was playing. I didn’t enjoy my football at that moment.”

She called out the packed soccer calendar as a possible contributing factor in player injuries in a column for Dutch newspaper AD in November.

Also in November, U.S. women’s national team fitness coach Dawn Scott raised the alarm over ACL injuries in women’s soccer in particular. Players who have injured their ACLs in 2022 include: USWNT’s Tierna Davidson, Catarina Macario and Christen Press; Germany’s Dzsenifer Marozsán; France’s Marie-Antoinette Katoto; Spain’s Alexia Putellas; Australia’s Ellie Carpenter; Brazil’s Marta; and Denmark’s Nadia Nadim.

Miedema’s Arsenal teammate and girlfriend, Beth Mead, joined that list when she ruptured her ACL in November. She likely will miss the 2023 World Cup as a result.

Vivianne Miedema, a nominee for the Ballon d’Or Féminin this year, criticized the global soccer awards ceremony for its treatment of the women’s game.

The Arsenal and Dutch striker called attention to the disparity between the number of men’s players honored at the event versus the number of women. Of the seven awards handed out at the Ballon d’Or, only one represents women’s soccer. Spain and Barcelona midfielder Alexia Putellas won the award recognizing the best player in the international women’s game in 2022 for the second straight year.

“I didn’t feel appreciated as a woman footballer there,” Miedema told BBC’s “Behind the Goals” podcast. “If they want to have women involved, they have to do it in a different way. They had five or six different awards for the men’s game while the women only have one. If they want to make it equal, they have to give the same awards to men’s and women’s football.”

Miedema attended the event in October with her partner, England striker Beth Mead, who finished as runner-up to Putellas. A photo of the two on the red carpet together circulated after the event with a caption describing Mead as Miedema’s “guest.”

The 26-year-old joked about the mistake on Twitter at the time but said on the podcast this week that it reflected the overall lack of respect for the women athletes.

“Waking up the next morning and that picture pops up, that states the issue we had the night before,” she said. “We’ve got the number two from that year, who should arguably have been number one, turning up to the event as ‘my guest.’ That would obviously never happen if [Lionel] Messi and Neymar had been walking next to each other.

“We obviously joke about it, but that shows there are so many improvements to be made. It needs to be organized so much better.”

Miedema is the all-time leading scorer for the Netherlands across both the men’s and women’s teams. Since returning to Arsenal this season from a mental and physical break, she has scored four goals in four games to lift the Gunners to second place in the WSL table and first place in Group C of the Champions League standings.

Vivianne Miedema is on a hot streak, scoring four times in four games to help move Arsenal into second place in the Women’s Super League standings.

In Sunday’s game against Aston Villa, Miedema scored the team’s second goal in a 4-1 win. Arsenal has 24 points on the season, three behind first-place Chelsea.

The Dutch forward also helped Arsenal beat Juventus last Wednesday, scoring the lone goal of the game. That victory moved Arsenal into first place in Group C of the Champions League standings and one win closer to the knockout rounds of the WCL.

Miedema credits her recent barrage to the extended break she took from the sport in November, which included a trip to Australia. Before her sojourn, she had lost her starting spot to teammate Frida Maanum and hadn’t scored in six appearances.

Since her return, the 26-year-old has been vocal about the need for rest — for herself and for all athletes.

Last Tuesday, Miedema spoke once again about her recovery from COVID-19, which kept her out of several matches at this summer’s Euros tournament and in bed for 10 days with a high fever. She returned for the Netherlands’ final game, playing the full 120 minutes.

After the Euros, training for the WSL season began almost immediately. For Miedema, the schedule meant little rest or recovery.

She spent the beginning of the season “almost on autopilot,” she said, before missing the October international window with an illness.

“I just didn’t feel mentally and physically ready to actually play,” she said ahead of Arsenal’s game against Juventus. “I think you could see that in the way that I was playing. I didn’t enjoy my football at that moment. And I think the moment you start not enjoying it, and start waking up in the morning not wanting to go in, I think that’s the moment that you need to make a switch.”

While in Australia, Miedema was able to get herself fit – something she had been unable to do ahead of the season as she recovered from her bout with COVID-19, she said. The game has once again become “easy” for her, she added.

“I feel physically a lot fitter now, and you have seen that in the recent games,” she said.

Miedema hopes that, by prioritizing her health, she can help encourage other players to take breaks. The recent women’s soccer schedule has not allowed for much time off. And an increase in player injuries – particularly torn ACLs – has been a point of concern for many.

Miedema called the injuries a “worrying pattern” in a column for Dutch newspaper AD. Both Leah Williamson and Rafaelle Souza have just returned from injuries for Arsenal.

Meanwhile, Miedema said in her column that her Arsenal teammate and partner Beth Mead likely will miss next summer’s World Cup for England with a torn ACL. Others who have suffered torn ACLs in 2022 include Alexia Putellas, Christen Press and Catarina Macario.

An increase in the number of international windows, leaving club teams with a limited number of players, also has increased player workloads, Miedema said. Women’s national teams have six international windows, while men’s teams play just four.

“As a player you want to play in the big tournaments, the biggest difference is we have more international windows than the men have,” Miedema said. “We also play the Olympics with our A team instead of the U23s. I think that’s something FIFA and UEFA need to start looking at.

“In women’s football, we also don’t have the same sorts of numbers within a squad. Man City’s men’s team probably has 22, 23 full-time, amazing players. This year, I think we’ve got 18,19 players that are capable of being in the squad for us.”

Arsenal manager Jonas Eidevall also has spoken about the issue.

“There is always the balance between freshness and having continuity in the training and playing,” he said in November. “We need to strike that balance.”

The rise in popularity of the women’s game has also shed light on the lack of depth in the player pool. More needs to be done to develop talent and increasing the number of “very good football players,” Eidevall said, including the development of better player academies.

“We cannot only focus on the top of the pyramid,” he continued. “We can have more players that are able to play more games and have a better foundation when they step up to be a professional to handle the demands.”

Vivianne Miedema is concerned about the workload on soccer players as the number of injuries grows.

An increasing number of players have suffered season-ending injuries this year, with the majority of them being ACL tears. That list includes Alexia Putellas, Christen Press, and now, England’s Beth Mead.

In her column for Dutch newspaper AD, Miedema confirmed that Mead will likely miss next summer’s World Cup. She also attributes the increase of injuries to a lack of rest.

“I see a worrying pattern. The playing calendar for both the women and the men is simply too full,” she wrote. “Actually, it’s just a shame. We are in a world that goes on and on and there are few players who say anything about it. I do. We go completely crazy with the tax on football players and football players.

“I can already envisage some of the reactions to this column, you know. ‘We have the best profession in the world, we earn a lot of money and we don’t have to complain. Just play football.'”

As women’s soccer grows in popularity and its standards, the demands on female players continue to increase. The postponement of the Tokyo Olympics to 2021 and the UEFA Women’s European Championships to 2022 means that European players could carry a workload of playing in five summer tournaments in five straight years.

There are also more games, as leagues like the WCL have introduced group stages and the NWSL has expanded both by teams and games.

Such a packed schedule led to Miedema taking a step back at the beginning of November, she says, explaining her recent absence in her column.

“At the beginning of this month I deliberately took a step back,” she continued. “I felt that my body and mind were ready for a rest. For people who do not work in top sport, that will sound strange. People who do work in our world will understand it better, but many players don’t feel that freedom to stand up for themselves or just want to continue in their tunnel.”

She says that Arsenal manager Jonas Eidevall “was initially surprised” by the request but found himself in agreement with one of his star players.

“I spent a large part of the European Championship last summer in my hotel room with Covid-19. After that, the preparation for the season started almost immediately,” she said. “I went through in one go and I paid the price for that. I had to get out.”

Speaking after Arsenal’s match on Thursday, Eidevall spoke about striking a balance. While Miedema has since returned, scoring the tying goal in Arsenal’s draw with Juventus, the issue of scheduling remains.

“There is always the balance between freshness and having continuity in the training and playing,” he said postgame. “We need to strike that balance. You can see that Viv was fighting really hard today with the team on the pitch.”

Player health should be paramount, Eidevall said, noting that there should be protected periods for players in which there are no club or international games played.

“I really think we need to consider in women’s football when we look at the calendar, how we can put the players health first. They are constantly going between really competitive games at club level, onto international level. It has taken a lot of my time thinking about it because my gut says that we are not creating something that is good for the players.

“At the moment there are players who get barely any vacation and it’s consecutive, year after year after year. It’s great if we’re going to have more competitive games but let’s have a calendar that allows players to recover so we can keep the quality too.”

The second weekend of Women’s Super League action featured some surprises. Look no further than Everton’s 3-0 road upset, which spoiled Liverpool’s record-breaking day at Anfield.

Arsenal, though, appeared as dominant as ever. The Gunners won 4-0 over Tottenham in front of a WSL record crowd of 47,367 fans.

WSL Plays of the Week

Jess Park dazzles with first goal

After four years at Manchester City, Jess Park went on loan to Everton this season and wasted no time recording her first WSL goal.

During a 3-0 road win in front of a Liverpool-record 27,574 fans, Park faked out Liverpool goalkeeper Rachael Laws to send one home.

“I tried that in training and messed it all up,” she said after the game. “I’m just glad it went in tonight!”

The Vivianne Miedema and Beth Mead show

Vivianne Miedema and Beth Mead put on a show for the crowd at Emirates Stadium on Saturday to help Arsenal to a dominant victory.

“Part of being in football is that you collect all those memories together with people that you really enjoy working with,” Arsenal manager Jonas Eidvall said. “Today was a special day for us and hopefully, it was the start of us playing in front of many people at the Emirates.”

Miedema continued to add to her all-time WSL goal count, scoring in the 44th minute and again in the 68th. The brace moved her into a tie for second-most goals this season behind Rachel Daly and teammate Beth Mead.

Mead also added to her goal count Saturday, adding a third in the fifth minute to get the scoring started for Arsenal. After a first attempt got sent back to her, Mead made sure to score on the second attempt, curling one past Rebecca Spencer.

Fran Kirby gets Chelsea back on track

Fran Kirby notched her second goal of the season in Chelsea’s 2-0 win over Manchester City on Sunday.

Kirby now has 34 goal involvements through 20 WSL appearances, scoring 21 goals and adding 13 assists in that span.

Vivianne Miedema will not play in the Netherlands’ match against Portugal on Wednesday after testing positive for COVID-19.

The Dutch national team said in a statement that she “will therefore be in isolation for the next few days.”

“When she no longer has any symptoms and tests negative she can rejoin the selection,” the statement continued.

Following Portugal, the Netherlands next will play Switzerland on July 17.

Miedema is the all-time leading goalscorer for the team, with 94 goals through 112 caps. She’s the second player from the team to test positive for COVID-19 in the tournament after Jackie Groenen.

Players from other countries have also tested positive during the tournament, including England’s Lotte Wubben-Moy.

The Netherlands is third in Group C standings, sitting behind Portugal and Switzerland due to goal differential. No team in Group C has won a game yet this tournament, with the Netherlands drawing 1-1 with Sweden in their opening match.

Also out for the team is goalkeeper Sari van Veenendaal, who suffered a shoulder injury during the team’s opening match. The Dutch have yet to qualify for next year’s World Cup, with just Denmark and France qualifying so far from UEFA.

Vivianne Miedema officially has re-signed with Arsenal, the Women’s Super League club announced Friday. The news of the one-year deal first was reported by The Athletic last week.

Miedema previously had expressed uncertainty about her future with the club.

She was adamant about her desire to win the Champions League, and she said she wanted to spend her future “at a club that best suits my ambitions.” Arsenal was knocked out of this year’s Champions League tournament in the quarterfinals by VfL Wolfsburg.

The forward had been linked to both Paris Saint-Germain and reigning UEFA Women’s Champions League title holder Barcelona.

In an interview on Arsenal’s website, the 25-year-old said that the decision to return “feels right, right now.”

“I had to follow my heart and I’m happy to be part of the team next year,” she said. “With Jonas [Eidvall] coming in things have changed and we are going in the right direction. As I said before, I want to win titles and I would love to win them with Arsenal.

“I feel like for me, winning titles with Arsenal will mean a lot more to me than winning them with another club at the moment.”

Arsenal signed Miedema in 2017 from Bayern Munich. Since then, she’s been a dominant force for the Gunners and has broken multiple WSL records. The top scorer in league history, she is the only player to ever score against every team she has faced in the league.

She’s won the Golden Boot twice and finished second behind Sam Kerr the past two seasons.

“Viv is a stellar talent and a hugely important player for this team, so it’s fantastic news that she is staying with us,” said Eidvall, the team’s manager. “As a club, our ambition is to win titles and compete at the highest level – we know Viv’s own ambitions are the same, and together we will give everything to achieve that.”

Vivianne Miedema is closing in on a one-year deal that would extend the forward’s contract and keep her at Arsenal, according to The Athletic.

The 25-year-old had said following Arsenal’s WSL title loss that she was unsure about what her future would look like. Rumors had linked her to reigning UEFA Women’s Champions League title holder Barcelona.

“I really want to win titles,” Miedema told BBC.”This year I haven’t won anything.

“If I feel like the club is moving in that direction then maybe I will stay another year or two years. I’m speaking with the club and Jonas [Eidevall]. I will have a couple of weeks on holiday and will then make a decision.”

Eidevall had said that the team would “do everything we can to keep her.”

She previously had been vocal about wanting to win the Champions League. Arsenal was knocked out of this year’s Champions League tournament in the quarterfinals by VfL Wolfsburg.

Despite the earlier uncertainty, Miedema was filming content at the Gunners’ stadium Tuesday in preparation for a later announcement, according to The Athletic.

Since arriving at Arsenal in 2017, Miedema has been a huge piece of the Gunners’ squad, scoring her 100th goal for the club earlier this season and finishing the season with 23 goals and nine assists. The all-time leading scorer in the WSL, she has scored 72 goals in competition.