Sarina Wiegman felt that England had “to fight” for their victory over Spain to boost their automatic qualification ambition for 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Lauren Hemp netted England’s winner with a third-minute half-volley from Alessia Russo’s chipped forward pass during a messy set-piece.
The win left England sat three points clear of Spain at the top of League A3 and on course to secure the sole automatic qualification spot for 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup out of their group,
“It’s a great step forward,” explained Wiegman to ITV post-match but she warned that the hard work still lies ahead with the reverse fixtures to come, which commences with a trip to Iceland on 18 April before they visit Spain on 5 June in a pivotal showdown ahead of their final qualifier at home to Ukraine on 9 June.
“This is hard now. Tonight, we recover and tomorrow, we get ready for Iceland because it’s a quick turnaround. It was an intense game. Be happy now but then we will switch straightaway to Iceland.”
Wiegman nevertheless was “really happy,” with the Lionesses’ performance against Spain as she praised them for their defensive discipline, despite being forced into a lower block than anticipated but was pleased at their ability to put the fright on Spain when ventured into their half.
“We got a good result. We had to defend a lot and we know Spain are so good on the ball. You have to defend well and be really compact.
“We had our chances – they got some too. But sometimes you have to fight to get the win and that’s what we did.
“We hoped we’d be in a higher block more but we got pushed back. Sometimes, we could have been better on the ball and create more momentum. As soon as we got in their half of the pitch, we made them uncomfortable.”
With captain, Leah Williamson not fit enough for the matchday squad due to a recent hamstring injury, Wiegman gambled on a central defensive pairing of Lotte Wubben-Moy and Esme Morgan – who hadn’t played together in those positions for England before.
The 56-year old Dutchman credited the pair for their ability to rise to their new challenge given their inexperience as a central defensive duo pair.
“I think they did really well,” commented Wiegman on Wubben-Moy and Morgan’s quality in central defence against top-tier opposition. “This is the highest level we get and tactically Spain are very good.
“You need to communicate at all times and have skill at all times. I’m really happy with how they did it.”
The win over Spain marked England Women’s 499th international senior match but Wiegman refused to lose sight of England’s history as a motivation for the current team to build upon into the future.
“The bigger picture of this evening is incredible,” reflected Wiegman on the importance of the team’s history and past players as Keira Walsh achieved her 100th senior cap in the match, whilst Lucia Kendall made her first start at Wembley Stadium.
“The legends are here and we always say we stand on their shoulders. Then Keira’s 100th cap, that’s massive for her and for Lucia [Kendall], her first start at Wembley, and I thought she did a good job.
“I’m very grateful that I’m part of this. It’s so good that we celebrate the generations that were before us. It’s great the game is moving up, we still have many steps to take, but from where we were it’s incredible.”
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