Wiegman disappointed to miss out on Olympics but proud of England’s efforts | OneFootball

England head coach Sarina Wiegman said that she was proud of the team’s efforts in their 6-0 victory over Scotland, although missing out on representing Team GB at the Olympics is hugely disappointing.

The Lionesses went into last night’s final round of UEFA Women’s Nations League group matches needing to better The Netherlands’ result against Belgium by three goals. England netted six against Scotland and looked set to qualify for the semi-finals but a 95th-minute goal for The Netherlands handed them a 4-0 win against Belgium and they claimed top spot in the group.

When speaking in the post-match press conference, England boss Wiegman said that she was proud of her players for their efforts but the overall feeling was one of disappointment.

“I think we delivered tonight, we delivered this camp,” Wiegman said. “The team showed lots of character, we started the game really well and we scored four goals in the first half.

“When Lucy (Bronze) scored, I thought ‘we are going to get this’ but that’s football, The Netherlands scored again at the very end, so that’s how close it was.

“I’m very proud of the players for this performance but overall, it is very disappointing to miss out.”

Looking back on the last few months, Wiegman highlighted the challenge of continuing to perform at a high level straight after playing in a World Cup final. She admitted that performance levels have dipped on occasions, although she couldn’t fault the players for their application in the latest camp.

She said “This team have experienced so many things. The World Cup was really intense, we had a lot of things thrown at us with injuries before the tournament and during the tournament but I felt that we performed at a real high level and we made the final.

“After that, there was hardly any rest and we went straight into the Nations League which I think was good; the Nations League has more competitive games. I think we played well in the Nations League but we had some moments where we struggled and we were punished.

“That’s football, it is not easy coming in from the World Cup and to keep performing at a high level. We had a few injuries and needed a bit of luck but sometimes, the level dropped.

“The players are not robots, that’s why I’m so proud of them this week, We’ve had a very good camp. I’m very proud of the team, how we performed, how we kept going, the character we showed and also today. You could see in every player that we really wanted to get a big win and we went for it. We got a big win and that’s why it is so disappointing.”

England’s players have had three consecutive years of playing in major international tournaments but they will now have a summer off in 2024. While the players will finally get some much-needed rest, Wiegman doesn’t see missing out on qualification for the Olympics as a positive.

“You want to go to every major tournament,” she said. “The career of a football player is [only] a certain amount of time. If you can play every major tournament, every player wants that.”

The England squad will regroup in February when they are expected to play in two international friendlies.