MY ACCOUNT
England forced the rest of Europe to sit up and take notice with their emphatic victory over the Netherlands last week.
The Dutch are among the favourites to win Women’s Euro 2022 but Sarina Wiegman’s side hit them for five at Elland Road on Friday night.
That result made it two wins from two for England in their pre-tournament warm-up games — and they will fully expect to make it three against Switzerland this evening.
As England prepare for their final friendly before the European Championship gets under way, we take a look at the biggest talking points ahead of that clash at the Letzigrund Stadium.
Mixing it up
Mary Earps, Lucy Bronze, Millie Bright, Leah Williamson, Keira Walsh and Lauren Hemp are the only players to start in both of England’s warm-up matches so far.
Wiegman rang the changes to her starting XI against the Netherlands, showcasing the remarkable depth she has at her disposal.
Not only does that keep their upcoming opponents guessing, it also keeps the Lionesses on their toes.
The players are not able to treat these games as meaningless friendlies because if they do not give 100%, somebody else will — and that might be their final opportunity in the first team.
The perfect response
It would be easy to get a little carried away with a 5-1 victory over the Netherlands.
But in her post-match interview, Wiegman focused on something that cannot be quantified — how her team reacted to falling behind.
She said: “It was a good learning moment that we came from behind and conceded a goal.
“We haven’t done that since September, since I came in. It’s good to see the reaction from the team and bring the game to the level we should be able to play.
“It’s not frustrating, it gave me the question of what was going on. The Netherlands gave us a hard time too.
“Tactically we needed to do a little different, in possession and out of possession, we are good at high ball tempo and playing runs behind.
“We didn’t do that, it was too low and did that a lot better the second half.”
Patterns emerging
For the second successive match, England stepped it up in the second half.
The Lionesses put three past Belgium after the break in their first warm-up match before scoring four times in the second period against the Dutch.
On one hand, this can be seen as a positive. England have gears to go through and do not fade after half-time.
However, you could also view this as a negative. Chances are being wasted in the opening 45 minutes and they have needed big second-half performances in both ties to claim victory.
The tournament hosts could eventually be punished for missed opportunities, especially in a knockout competition.
Kirby’s return
There was talk that Fran Kirby might miss out on a place in Wiegman’s final squad having struggled with fitness last season.
The Chelsea attacker made the cut but had to settle for a place on the bench against Belgium.
She was restored to the starting XI for the Netherlands fixture and left a mark on proceedings.
Her assist for Bronze’s opener was fortunate but deserved. She drove forward and forced players to close her down after picking up possession, which then created space for others.
Kirby also played a role in the second England goal, dropping deep to link play in the build-up.
She was not at her brilliant best — but it was certainly a glimpse at why she can be so dangerous for the Lionesses.
Switzerland form
Switzerland lost 7-0 to Germany in their last outing, so this should be the easiest of England’s three friendly matches.
But it is perhaps their biggest test.
Wiegman and her team need to show that they are not taking anything for granted. They need to demonstrate that they are giving 100%, no matter who the opposition is.
After all, not all of their Group A opponents will match the quality of Belgium and the Netherlands.
A win here is just as much of a statement as the team’s previous two results.
