Wiegman highlights importance of another solid start when England face Spain | OneFootball

England head coach Sarina Wiegman says that it is important that her side come out flying again when they take on Spain in a UEFA Women’s Nations League fixture in Barcelona on Tuesday.

The Lionesses face the world champions off the back of a 6-0 victory over Portugal at Wembley on Friday night. England netted twice in the first six minutes, silencing the opposition from the first whistle.

When speaking to the media ahead of the fixture against Spain, England boss Wiegman said that it is important to carry forward the momentum from Friday and start the game well.

“We always want to perform,” Wiegman said. “In February, we had a draw against Portugal and a win against Spain, so that was different and then in April, we had a good performance against Belgium and a not so good performance in the second game.

“Spain is a totally different game to what we had on Friday, they’re a very different opponent. I thought we started really well against Portugal and it really helped scoring two goals within five minutes. We just played very well.

“We are aware that Spain is different; they are at the highest level that we can imagine, so we have to have a good start again. We are going out there to put in the best performance and take another step in our style of play, our development and to have a good game plan.”

Victory over Spain would see England qualify for the UEFA Women’s Nations League semi-finals. Wiegman explained that the Lionesses must balance that challenge with their preparation for the UEFA Women’s EURO 2025.

She said “Of course, we want to win. You want to win every prize that you can win.

“We want to have a good performance tomorrow but we are also preparing for the EUROs, so if a player was carrying a little injury and it was a risk for the EUROs then I wouldn’t play her. That’s one difference but at the same time, I think our squad is strong enough to have a good performance tomorrow against a top team. We are a good team too and we are going to do everything to win the game.”

Wiegman will name her UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 squad on Thursday and the England boss says that she is close to knowing her final group for the tournament.

She said “We are pretty close. Of course, you want to get through the game tomorrow and then make the final decision but we are pretty close.”

England’s UEFA Women’s Nations League fixture against Spain kicks-off at 6pm on Tuesday evening.