Lionesses star Lauren Hemp set to finally make Man City return after five months out with knee injury in huge boost to England's Euro 2025 hopes

Hemp underwent surgery back in November and her absence has seriously hurt a City side that has endured a major injury crisis, with the likes of Vivianne Miedema, Khadija Shaw and Alex Greenwood also currently sidelined. In the time since Hemp last played, the Manchester outfit have lost a League Cup final, an FA Cup semi-final, a Champions League quarter-final and slipped well out of a Women's Super League title race they were serious contenders in. Indeed, even a European spot looks out of their reach now, with Sunday's 1-1 draw against Everton leaving them seven points off the top three with just three games remaining.

However, the news of Hemp's imminent return is a serious boost for England, who will start their European title defence in less than three months. The Lionesses are also in a bad place when it comes to absences, with Hemp, Greenwood and Georgia Stanway all having knee surgeries this term while Lauren James is now set for a period on the sidelines due to a hamstring injury. However, the City winger may still be able to build up some fitness before the season is out.

"Lauren Hemp will be in the squad for the Leicester game as it stands," Nick Cushing, City's interim boss, said after the draw with Everton. "She's trained with the team, she probably just didn't do enough team training to make the game today. She'll definitely be in the squad for Leicester and she's really hungry to start helping the team."

City might be a long shot to make the Champions League places now but Hemp's return will still give the team a moral boost after the news earlier this week that Mary Fowler, who has been excellent on the left in her team-mate's absence, has torn her ACL. The Australia international has joined a lengthy injury list that still includes Greenwood, Miedema, Shaw, Aoba Fujino and Jill Roord. The team was at least able to welcome defender Rebecca Knaak back into the fold this weekend, after two months out with a hamstring issue.

City will likely need to win all of their final three WSL games to stand any chance of breaking into the European spots, with a trip to Leicester next week followed by games against Manchester United and Crystal Palace. It's incredibly unlikely that they can overcome the seven-point gap to the Red Devils but there's no doubt Hemp's return will increase those very slim chances.