‘It has been a very special period’ – Wiegman impressed with early signs from England | OneFootball

England head coach Sarina Wiegman has described the first four months of her tenure as ‘a very special period’.

The Lionesses have won six games out of six under the guidance of the Dutch coach while they have scored 53 goals and have conceded zero.

Reflecting following tonight’s record 20-0 FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 qualifying victory over Latvia at The Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster, Wiegman said that she is loving life as England boss, highlighting that it has been a special period for herself and the team.

“It has been a very special period,” Wiegman said in the post-match press conference. “It has been a good start for the team, we have had three international periods now and it has been such a pleasure to work with everyone. I have had a very warm welcome from The FA and also the staff and the players.

“Even though we have not played the best opponents, you can see that there is so much energy in the team and we want to play so well. That is what we saw today, the opponent wasn’t good but you have to play well yourselves, keep up the tempo of the game, you have to stay in shape, collaborate so well. All of the time, we are talking about improving things, keeping going not only in training but also in the games.”

While poor opponents offered England the opportunity to score 20 goals for the first time in a competitive fixture, the quality of some of the Lionesses’ goals were of a good standard, comments which were echoed by Wiegman.

She said “We are talking about crosses, how to get into the box, to the near post and to the far post. They were such great crosses and finishes too but also, sometimes Beth Mead and Lauren Hemp switched and that gave another dimension to the game. Those little things you want to try and see also against higher quality opponents.”

With Wiegman keen to keep consistency in her team selection, those players not starting games are seriously challenged to earn their minutes. The substitutes really stepped up to the mark this evening with four out of five getting their names on the scoresheet, something which pleased their coach.

“We kept the level of the game high and when that happens all of time, it shows the depth of our team,” Wiegman said. “We had a good second half with some other players, sometimes that is really hard because you have got to adapt straight away but that is something that the players did really well.

“Again, the opponent wasn’t that good but you still have to make the game yourselves, control the speed of the game, move the ball, get in shape, connect with your teammates. I think that is what we do really well.”

England will now look ahead to the Four Nations Tournament on home soil in February 2022.