Sarina Wiegman cheers after reaching the World Cup final Photo: © BSR Agency
England will be in the final of the World Cup on Sunday. The Lionesses were too strong for host country Australia in the semi-finals on Wednesday morning (Dutch time): 3-1.
The British press is therefore lyrical about the performance of national coach Sarina Wiegman and her team. “They’ve made history, but this is a team of winners and they’re not done yet,” writes the BBC. “Silencing a sell-out crowd at Stadium Australia with their 3-1 win, the Lionesses became the first England side since 1966 to reach the final on the world stage.”
The medium is particularly pleased with England’s second half, in which the team overcame Sam Kerr’s equalizer. “However, it was the Lionesses who were more relentless, kept their composure in the big moments and delivered when it mattered. They are confident going into the final in Sydney after overcoming every hurdle in the tournament so far.”
The Daily Mail is also enthusiastic. “Everyone was talking about how this was going to be Australia’s tournament, their chance to reach a World Cup final for the first honour, their chance to make history. But England decided that they would write the scenario differently, that they would throw the party. ruin and that they would face Spain in Sunday’s final.The Lionesses delivered the performance of a lifetime beating the Aussies 3-1 in their own backyard.”
SkySports is full of praise for Wiegman: “England have already made history and are now on the verge of cementing their reputation as one of the most fearsome women’s teams on the international stage. It took Sarina Wiegman less than 12 months to hone a winning formula The European conquest was just the beginning of a beautiful journey to rule the world.”
“The World Cup was always a realistic goal when Wiegman was appointed national coach, given the short turnaround between her initiation and the European Championship,” they write. “That is the precise, detail-oriented approach of the Dutch woman, she has accelerated the development of English women’s football. No one could have ever imagined something like this in their wildest dreams. England is finally a team that believes in it.”
