Published 09 April 2024 3 min read
England Women's Senior Team
Sarina Wiegman assesses England's win in Ireland
The Lionesses head coach saw her team get their first win of new EURO qualifying campaign with victory in Dublin
MATCH CENTRE: IRELAND v ENGLAND
England boss Sarina Wiegman was pleased to see her team get their first win of the new UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 qualifying campaign, after a 2-0 win over Republic of Ireland in Dublin.
The Lionesses secured three points at the Aviva Stadium after first-half goals from Lauren James and Alex Greenwood put them in the driving seat at the break.
But the hosts came back out strongly in the second half as they put pressure on Wiegman’s team in search of a route into the match.
"It was a hard game. I think we totally dominated the first half and we could’ve been up at least 4-0,” said Wiegman after the game.
"Of course, later on in the game, they want to force a goal. They came with a strong throw-in and there’s even more opportunities than the first half.
The Lionesses secured three points at the Aviva Stadium after first-half goals from Lauren James and Alex Greenwood put them in the driving seat at the break.
But the hosts came back out strongly in the second half as they put pressure on Wiegman’s team in search of a route into the match.
"It was a hard game. I think we totally dominated the first half and we could’ve been up at least 4-0,” said Wiegman after the game.
"Of course, later on in the game, they want to force a goal. They came with a strong throw-in and there’s even more opportunities than the first half.
“So it became a fight and we actually wanted to stay out of the fight.
"It's good that we kept the win to nil, that's the most important thing. We showed lots more and being really tight in possession.”
The result means England are up and running in their qualifying group, following the 1-1 draw in their opening game with Sweden at Wembley last week.
But Wiegman saw this game as a completely different challenge, and knows it will be a different type of game to what her side will face in their double-header against France in May and June.
"I think this game was totally different [to Sweden],” added the head coach.
“They dropped deeper, they tried to play physical and I think in the first half, we had moments when we were playing really well.
“It's just at moments we had to switch the game and switch play a little bit more. And sometimes, we were a little bit too loose on the ball.
"We were a little bit unfortunate when Beth [Mead] and Fran [Kirby] came in, if we would have put that chance into the back of the net, that would have helped us a little bit but that's football to at the end we just we just kept the nil."
"It's good that we kept the win to nil, that's the most important thing. We showed lots more and being really tight in possession.”
The result means England are up and running in their qualifying group, following the 1-1 draw in their opening game with Sweden at Wembley last week.
But Wiegman saw this game as a completely different challenge, and knows it will be a different type of game to what her side will face in their double-header against France in May and June.
"I think this game was totally different [to Sweden],” added the head coach.
“They dropped deeper, they tried to play physical and I think in the first half, we had moments when we were playing really well.
“It's just at moments we had to switch the game and switch play a little bit more. And sometimes, we were a little bit too loose on the ball.
"We were a little bit unfortunate when Beth [Mead] and Fran [Kirby] came in, if we would have put that chance into the back of the net, that would have helped us a little bit but that's football to at the end we just we just kept the nil."