• Both hosts France and holders USA announced their squads for France 2019
• Head coaches Corinne Diacre (FRA) and Jill Ellis (USA) made remarks
• Final 23-player squad lists will be published in late May

With just over a month until the FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019™ kicks off, hosts France and holders USA both announced their squads for the tournament on the same day.

France head coach Corinne Diacre announced Les Bleues’ 23-player squad live on French television station TF1.

With 36 days before the competition kicks off, Diacre’s list delivered few surprises, except for perhaps the absence of Marie-Antoinette Katoto (20), who is the top goalscorer in the French league this season and considered one of the most promising young players in French football.

“It was a tough choice,” Diacre commented on the decision. “But I made that choice. Marie-Antoinette has huge potential. She’s young, was just missing a little something for me, while others showed a little more. It was a tough decision, but every decision was made in favour of the group as a whole.”

Diacre opted for Guingamp forward Emelyne Laurent instead. “She’s very fast, sometimes so fast that she forgets the ball. There weren’t many players with her qualities. I did my best to choose players who are the most complementary as possible.”

Holders USA release 23-player list

Three-time Women’s World Cup champions USA also announced their squad on Thursday, with 2015 adidas Golden Ball winner Carli Lloyd named to her fourth world finals roster, the only player in the team to achieve the feat.

“Selecting a World Cup team is a long process, and I want to thank the players – the ones that made the final team and the ones that didn’t – for all of their hard work over the past two and a half years,” said Ellis on ussoccer.com. “They all pushed each other in every training session and every game and challenged the coaches to make some tough decisions. These 23 players have been through adversity and success, and it’s a group that has the talent, confidence, experience and desire to help us win the World Cup.”

The USA team includes 11 players who will be making their first appearance at a Women’s World Cup, while 12 of the squad members were a part of the FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015 championship team.

All squads are provisional until the final list of 23 players is announced by FIFA, following their submission by participating teams in late May.