Sarina Wiegman says England have to make sure their Euro 2025 derby against Wales does not become a “fighting game” and urged the Lionesses to focus on their own performance in order to reach the quarter-finals.
After beating the Netherlands 4-0 England can reach the quarter-finals with a win over rivals Wales, who are making their tournament debuts at the Euros and are the lowest-ranked side in the 16-team competition.
Wales are all-but out of the Euros and require a four-goal win in their final group game against England while also needing France to beat the Netherlands in order to reach the knockout stages.
Rhian Wilkinson’s side have talked up how big a game it is for Wales as a nation given their historic rivalry with England and they will be determined to not come home for the Euros empty handed.
“I hope we will see a game where we have a lot of the ball and we play very good in possession, so we don’t let it become a fighting game,” Wiegman said.
Asked if she was concerned by an overly physical game, Wiegman said: “I am not worried. I think Wales are very compact and they can fight and are really together but also when they have the ball they can play direct.
“We are trying to prevent that, and the best way is to be good on the ball yourself and move the ball quickly to exploit the spaces.”
Wiegman’s team embraced the spirit of “proper England” to bounce back from their opening defeat against the Netherlands and the Dutch coach insisted her players are passionate about the Wales fixture as well.
“For them it is a big game but for us it is too. We want to win and get through the group stage. There is passion but we have passion too. We want to be really focused and good on the ball. We have to be patient.”
England took pride from how they responded to the pressure of a “must-win” game against the Netherlands after an opening defeat to France left their tournament hopes on the line.
On Friday forward Lauren Hemp said every game is now a “final” for England and the Lonesses want to take the same mentality that worked against the Netherlands into their final group game against Wales.
“We have our own preparation and we know what is on the line and we will do everything to win the game and get through,” Wiegman added.
“There is always pressure on England and we will try and play a good game and hopefully we can have the ball a lot and exploit spaces. I learned about the history and the rivalry but we are focused on what we want to do and how we want to play.
“We have to move the ball quickly and be patient. We have also seen that Wales are compact and sometimes higher up the pitch too. We expect everything and we will try to break that down.”
Wales captain Angharad James said the motivation to beat England and knock the holders out of Euro 2025 is “in our blood and DNA” as the rivals prepare to meet in the final round of the group stage.
“First and foremost we concentrate on ourselves and delivering the gameplan and getting the performance right,” James said. “If we do then the result will hopefully come with that.
“As a Welsh woman, do you want to knock England out? Of course you do. It’s in our blood, it’s in our DNA, the rivalry has always been and always will be there.
