Chloe Kelly's Euros nightmare is edging towards reality - so will Arsenal loan be enough to earn England's 2022 hero a Lionesses recall?

Wiegman was straight to the point when asked about Kelly's omission on Tuesday. "She hasn't played enough, in my opinion," the England boss replied. "She's moved clubs now but last autumn, she hardly played and, as I said, she built some credit. But over that time, she made so few minutes."

It's been an unfortunate few weeks for the winger, really. After all, in other circumstances, she would've had three games under her belt for Arsenal by now. However, the Gunners' first two games after her deadline-day move were actually against Man City, in the league and then in the League Cup, and she couldn't feature against her parent club due to the terms of the loan. Then, at the weekend, she wasn't involved in the FA Cup tie against London City Lionesses as her final appearance for City was in that competition, thus cup-tying her.

Kelly can finally make her long-awaited second Arsenal debut against Tottenham on Sunday, adding to the 16 appearances she made for the club when she initially broke into the first-team as an exciting academy product. But if Wiegman did select the winger for her February squad, that would've been the only action she'd have had before two big Nations League games against Portugal and Spain. To leave her out was the right call.

What really came across in Wiegman's comments about Kelly this week, though, was that she clearly has a lot of belief in the player's ability to turn things around with this move. "We had a good conversation yesterday and she understands," the England boss said, before stressing: "She's not out for the Euros. When she gets back, she's in full training, of course, hopefully she gets the minutes soon and she can show [what she can do] again, and then, as I said, we'll revisit it."

This is a player that Wiegman trusts and knows will deliver for her. When she was called up for Euro 2022, Kelly was only recently back from an ACL injury, but her electric form was too good to ignore. It was a bit of a gamble, really. The winger played just 302 minutes across the final five games of the 2021-22 Women's Super League season before being selected for that tournament. But she repaid the faith when she scored the winning goal at Wembley and secured the European Championship title.

Kelly has had other huge moments in England colours, too. Her winning spot-kick in the penalty shootout victory over Nigeria at the 2023 Women's World Cup was another example of her ability to handle the pressure brilliantly. It's no wonder Wiegman has that belief in her.

It's clear, then, that if Kelly can get back on the pitch on a regular basis at club level and show strong form, there is a path back into the England squad ahead of the Euros this summer. On the face of it, Arsenal might seem like a strange landing spot in her bid to do that. The Gunners are one of the best clubs in Europe and their squad boasts plenty of talent, with Beth Mead and Caitlin Foord among those that Kelly will fight for a starting place.

But the reality is that Arsenal have needed another winger for a while now. Lina Hurtig has been ravaged by injuries in her time at the club, reducing the depth on offer in the wide areas. Katie McCabe can push forward from left-back, but she has been outstanding in defence this year. Furthermore, Steph Catley, who would fill in for her on the left, has shone at centre-back this season. Finally, while Mariona Caldentey thrived at Barcelona on the left, she's arguably been more effective in central positions in her first campaign at Arsenal.

For head coach Renee Slegers to keep players in the positions they've performed best in, and to relieve the pressure on Mead and Foord, the Gunners needed another winger. In Kelly, they've got one with top-level experience who will be chomping at the bit to show what she can do. With Arsenal still in the FA Cup and the Champions League, they need that depth even more - and Kelly should get her minutes.

It's also worth noting just how motivated the winger is going to be to take this chance, for so many reasons. First of all, there's the fact she hasn't been playing lately; she's going to be extremely eager to remind everyone of her quality and show that her lack of game time was not representative of the talent she possesses.

When this loan spell ends, Kelly will also be a free agent, so this is real shop-window moment for her as well. The 27-year-old is playing for her next contract. That could well be with Arsenal if things go well over the next few months, or it could come somewhere else entirely. Either way, this is the chance for her to show clubs what she can do.

And, of course, this is Kelly's opportunity to ensure she is on the plane to Switzerland this summer to help England defend the European title that her dramatic extra-time goal secured back in 2022.

Kelly needed this move, Arsenal needed this move and perhaps England needed this move too because, right now, the wide positions in Wiegman's squad kind of pick themselves. Mead is a stalwart, as is Lauren James, who is back this month after injury. Lauren Hemp is missing, having had knee surgery in November, so it's the youthful duo of Jessica Naz and Aggie Beever-Jones who fill the rest of the wide spots this month.

Naz is a raw talent who has shown glimpses with the Lionesses, but still needs to refine her end product, while Beever-Jones has struggled for opportunities despite becoming a regular member of Wiegman's squad. Going into the Euros, at which England have a challenging group including France and the Netherlands, those wide areas could quickly become fragile in experience and proven quality if Hemp's return wasn't to go as smoothly as hoped, if James' recent injury troubles recur, or if someone else entirely was to suddenly be absent. It's not a position as abundantly deep as it has been in recent years.

A return to some steady form for Kelly would, at the very least, offer extra competition and insurance for Wiegman and her Lionesses. Better yet, if she can hit the heights she has shown she is capable of throughout most of her career to date, England will be able to welcome a genuine match-winner back into contention right before their European title defence begins.