CAROLINE WEIR has returned to the Scotland squad more than a year after suffering a serious knee injury that saw her miss almost 12 months of competitive football.

The 29-year-old Dunfermline-born star, who plays her club football with Real Madrid, has been named in Pedro Martinez Losa's pool for the UEFA Women's Euro play-off, first round, tie with Hungary later this month.

It is the first time that the former Dunfermline High School pupil will link-up with the national side since she ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her left knee during a 1-1 draw with Belgium, at Hampden Park, last September.

Weir, who has won 102 caps for her country at senior level, scoring 17 goals, returned to training earlier this year, and came back for her club in their opening league match last month.

She marked the occasion by scoring twice in a 5-0 victory at Espanyol, and posted afterwards on social media that it was a "special night", commenting: "What a rollercoaster the last 11 months have been.

"Thank you to all the people around me who helped me through the tougher days and who were there to celebrate the small wins. So happy to be back with this team and to kick off the season with three points."

During her time on the sidelines, Weir's Scotland team-mates, having been relegated from League A of the UEFA Women's Nations League in 2023, were unbeaten in their League B, Group Two, campaign earlier this year.

The Scots won four of their five games against Serbia, who they drew with in their opener, Slovakia and Israel to win promotion back to League A, and secure a play-off place for next summer's UEFA Women's European Championships.

'Massive campaign'

They are four games away from a place in the finals and, during a visit home to lead a special football camp for youngsters, organised by The Pars Foundation, the charity which runs community programmes on behalf of Dunfermline Athletic, Weir told Press Sport that the qualifying campaign for this tournament was "a massive one" for the squad.

READ MORE: IN PICTURES: Scotland star Caroline returns home to lead Pars Foundation camp

She was part of the squad that played at Euro 2017, the Scottish women's side's first major international competition, and the 2019 World Cup, but the national side have missed out on the last two tournaments.

"Where we are in the squad, with the ages of everyone, and the experience, I think we've got a good chance to go and qualify," she said.

"We've not performed in the last campaigns as well as we'd like to, but I do think this one is a big one for us, just because of the age and stage of a lot of the squad, the experience, and also the fact we haven't qualified for the last two tournaments."

Caroline Weir spent almost a year on the sidelines after suffering an ACL injury.Caroline Weir spent almost a year on the sidelines after suffering an ACL injury. (Image: Craig Brown.)

'Emotional return'

Speaking at a media conference to announce his squad today (Monday), Martinez Losa said Weir's return was "emotional", commenting: "She's playing at a very good level.

"I think there's more to come from her, but she's probably in the best position she could be at this moment in time.

"She's with confidence, she scored a good goal last night, playing minutes, playing Champions League so, obviously for us and the team, it's great news.

"It's also emotional in one way to bring in a player who's been going through a process, a hard process, of recovery.

"Curiously, we just met the day that it was one year since she got injured. I was not prepared but, when we met, she said that.

"Now we are obviously in another moment, hopefully positive for her, positive for the team, and for us she is a very important player from a leadership perspective on the pitch, but also what she brings to us in terms of energy and confidence off the pitch."

Return to action for Real - and another award

Following her return to competitive action at club level, Weir has featured in all six of Real Madrid's Liga Femenina matches, scoring her third goal of the season last night (Sunday) in a 1-1 draw with derby rivals Atlético Madrid, as well as in UEFA Champions League matches with Sporting Lisbon and Chelsea.

Her performances domestically, which have helped Real to second place in the table, two points behind Barcelona, also saw her named as the Mahou Cinco Estrellas Player of the Month for September.

That accolade came after she was, last year, she was awarded the Liga F Player of the Season for 2022/23, presented by the Spanish Footballers' Association (AFE), having also been named as the Scottish Football Writers' Association's Women's International Player of the Year.

"I'm very happy to be back with the team," Weir told her club's website.

"It's a year since my operation and it's been a year of ups and downs. It feels great to be here after playing a month with the team.

"I'm enjoying being back and I'm trying to get back to a good level of fitness to help the team."

Scotland's first leg of their UEFA Women's Euro play-off, first round, takes place in Budapest on Friday October 25, with the return taking place at Hibernian's Easter Road four days later.