MY ACCOUNT
Chloe Kelly marked her return to England duty with a goal as the Lionesses began their European Championship preparation with a 3-0 win over Belgium.
Sarina Wiegman’s side will have felt hard-done-by to go in goalless at the break after missing a number of first-half chances.
But the hosts took the lead in the 62nd minute as Kelly’s deflected effort deceived Belgium goalkeeper Nicky Evrard — the perfect return for the Manchester City winger following an ACL injury.
The Lionesses doubled their advantage moments later when Rachel Daly volleyed into the top corner.
The hosts continued to dominate and netted their third when Leah Williamson’s volley rebounded off Evrard to round off a superb performance.
We have picked out five talking points from the clash in the West Midlands.
Unbeaten
Victory means England remain unbeaten under Wiegman — having won 10 of their 12 games under the former Netherlands coach.
The Lionesses have been in imperious form of late and have already racked up 75 goals under Wiegman.
England also did something the men’s side were unable to do this week: score a goal at Molineux.
There is a huge amount of competition in the Lionesses squad and Wiegman utilised that as her three half-time substitutions — Daly, Alex Greenwood and Fran Kirby — changed the game.
Flying full-backs
It was clear from the start that England’s full-backs had been asked to make marauding forward runs at every opportunity.
As was indicative of Wiegman’s Netherlands side of the past, the Lionesses’ central defenders looked to spread the play by making penetrative passes out wide.
That worked to a tee as Wiegman’s side found plenty of joy in the wide areas via their high-flying full-back pair — acting as another component of an extremely dangerous attacking unit.
There were warning signs though. Belgium’s best opportunity came through a quick counter-attack with the England defence vulnerable due to the advanced position of their full-backs.
Midfield maestro
England captain Williamson was superb in the hosts’ engine room, acting as the beating heart of Wiegman’s side.
There have been question marks over whether the Arsenal star is better utilised as a midfielder or a centre-back, her natural position, but Williamson showed exactly what she is capable of in a more advanced role.
The midfielder dictated the game with a fine range of passing and constantly drew the Belgian defence out of position with runs between the lines.
Williamson had a golden opportunity in the first half as she raced in behind the visitors’ defence but her lofted effort was cleared off the line.
The England captain made amends with the part she played in the Lionesses’ third goal.
Impenetrable
England goalkeeper Mary Earps’ clean sheet never really looked in doubt at Molineux, as it was another dominant defensive display from Wiegman’s side.
The Lionesses have conceded just twice since Wiegman took charge last September and Earps was hardly tested with the visitors having just a solitary effort on target.
Wiegman’s side used a high press which afforded Belgium little possession while turnovers inside the Belgian Red Flames’ half became a constant theme.
Perfect prep
It is European champions the Netherlands next for the Lionesses as preparations continue ahead of next month’s European Championship.
And Wiegman was thrilled with her side’s warm-up to the tournament on home soil.
She said: “We dominated the game. We created lots of chances but didn’t score in the first half.
“We gave them one chance. We said at half-time we wanted more runs in behind, keep our patience and score some goals.
“It shows how the depth in the team is. We wanted to win but we wanted to try other things.
“They gave us loads of information we can continue working on tomorrow.”
