'Chronic pain' forces Scotland captain Corsie to retire

Scotland skipper Rachel Corsie will discontinue adjacent week aft surviving successful "chronic pain" pinch a knee wounded that kept her retired for nan mostly of nan season.

The 35-year-old will subordinate up pinch Melissa Andreatta's first Scotland campy connected Monday aft receiving her first call-up since July for nan last 2 Nations League A games against Austria connected Friday and nan Netherlands adjacent Tuesday - unrecorded connected BBC Scotland.

The defender made her return to shot for Aston Villa connected 30 April, aft not featuring for nan Women's Super League broadside since September. It was announced connected 9 May that she would time off Villa astatine nan extremity of nan season.

Corsie, who has 154 world caps and 20 goals and played astatine Euro 2017 and nan 2019 World Cup, says it "feels for illustration nan correct moment" for retirement.

"My assemblage has really wanted this to beryllium my past year," she said.

"Playing successful nan WSL, playing world football, I deliberation it's nan highest level, and to beryllium turning 36 successful August knowing I'm going to extremity playing astatine nan highest point, it feels nan correct spot for me."

Aberdeen-born Corsie started pinch Glasgow City successful 2008 and won 13 awesome honours pinch Scotland's then-dominant unit earlier joining Notts County successful 2014.

A six-year stint successful nan NWSL successful nan United States - pinch Seattle Reign, Utah Royals and Kansas City Current - followed, though she enjoyed indebtedness moves to Canberra United and Birmingham City aft besides heading backmost to City successful 2015 wherever she picked up different SWPL and Scottish Cup double.

The centre-back joined Villa successful 2022 and closed retired her 18-year nine profession pinch nan WSL broadside by returning from a sixth cognition - and 5th connected her near knee - for their last 2 convention games.

"Getting backmost to playing astatine nan extremity of nan play was a really reliable ambition and objective, but we sewage there," Corsie said.

"I was told by nan surgeon earlier having nan room that location was nan action to person it, but nan information of my knee was reasonably concerning and that though room would perchance springiness immoderate relief, location was rather a superior likelihood that nan harm that's been done complete nan people of my profession is going to beryllium impactful to nan remainder of my life.

"I wanted to do nan room because I knew that I couldn't get backmost playing, leaving it arsenic it was.

"You person this self-belief that 'I've done it before, I could do it again'.

"I fundamentally was conscionable successful chronic symptom each nan time. Walking up and down stairs successful nan house, sitting successful nan car for periods of time, getting successful and retired of nan ablution and having to climb retired complete nan bath.

"All these small things, nan day-to-day things that for maine are now not normal.

"It's been a reliable travel but I've made it and it has been worthy - I deliberation - each those days successful pain."

Throughout her spell connected nan sidelines, Corsie has ne'er hidden her desire to return for Scotland.

The skipper was an ever-present astir campy earlier this play erstwhile nan Scots suffered play-off pain again successful Euro 2025 qualifying against Finland.

She led her state retired successful France successful 2019 astatine their first World Cup, having played a important domiciled successful their qualification for a first awesome tourney - Euro 2017 - 2 years prior.

Such heights person ne'er been reached again. And, while a swansong successful Switzerland ought to person been successful nan thoughts six months ago, pulling nan acheronian bluish astatine Hampden aliases successful nan Netherlands successful nan coming days is simply a adjacent second.

Though she admits she'll beryllium "a full mess" connected nan last whistle.

When asked if this had nan imaginable to beryllium nan cleanable goodbye, Corsie replied: "I deliberation it does for maine and I deliberation it's a really unsocial opportunity."

"It's been nan 1 point that's been nan ray that I've needed astatine times to support going, to want to support pushing," she added.

"It's been nan biggest motivator, that emotion of playing for Scotland."