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England captain Leah Williamson limps off injured for Arsenal

England captain Leah Williamson was forced off with a potentially serious injury in the first half of Arsenal's Women's Super League (WSL) fixture against Manchester United on Wednesday.

Williamson went down in the 11th minute after seemingly jarring and popping her right knee as she tried to shield the ball. There was instant concern for the England captain after she immediately signaled to the bench and hit her palm against the turf as she went down.

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Williamson, 26, opted to limp off the pitch with help from the trainers rather than leaving the field of play on a stretcher, with BBC cameras showing the defender being helped down the tunnel by Little.

She was replaced by Gio Queiroz in the rearranged fixture played ahead of Arsenal's Champions League semifinal first leg against Wolfsburg on Sunday.

Speaking after the game, which Manchester United won 1-0, Arsenal manager Jonas Eidevall said he did not yet know the extent of Williamson's injury but acknowledged that "Of course it's not good that she had to come off."

Having already missed two months of the season due to an ankle injury, Williamson had returned to form and continued to play a key role for the Gunners as well as England.

If the injury is a serious one, she'll join Beth Mead (ACL), Vivianne Miedema (ACL), Kim Little (hamstring), Caitlin Foord and Lina Hurtig in the treatment room and further hamper Arsenal's chances of finishing in the top three in the WSL as well as progressing in Europe.

There were more worries for Arsenal in the first half when Frida Leonhardsen Maanum went down and required treatment although the Norwegian international opted to play on.

Williamson's injury will also be a major concern for England coach Sarina Wiegman with the Women's World Cup just three months away. The versatile Williamson captained her country as they won last year's European Championship.