Sarina Wiegman says England are ready to experiment

Sarina Wiegman praised Manchester City’s Laura Blindkilde Brown and Leicester City’s Ruby Mace, who both received their first-ever England senior call-ups for the upcoming international camp in November and December.

And the England boss is hoping the two new faces, who could make their bow for the Lionesses against the USA and Switzerland, settle into life with the senior squad.

“They are young players – very talented players – but they've also done very well with the under-23s,” said Wiegman. “This is an opportunity now to bring them in and see them in our environment. I hope they start competing straightaway.”

The Lionesses will go head-to-head with Emma Hayes’ USA team later this month, when the former Chelsea head coach leads her side out at Wembley Stadium on Saturday 30 November.

Wiegman, meanwhile, is relishing the meeting between England and the Olympic gold medalists and of course going up against Hayes.

“Before, we were calling each other a lot because she was coaching Chelsea and Chelsea players came into our squad so that was a collaboration which went really well,” explained Wiegman. “Then, of course, we know where she went and what she did.

“She’s done an amazing job at Chelsea but now, going into that environment with the USA and winning gold medals, it’s incredible what she’s done. It’s really, really impressive.

“I’m looking forward to seeing and meeting her and playing USA with England. It’s going to be a good one. What she’s done in the women’s game and what she’s done at Chelsea, I think she was really ready for that.”

Wiegman also explained that the squad is likely to see some rotation over the course of the next two fixtures, which will serve as a learning curve for her players.

“In this camp, we’re going to try out things and experiment,” revealed Wiegman. “We have to embrace that we don’t get everything right and we will not be perfect – I don’t think you will ever be perfect but we’re trying to be.

We're LIVE from St. George’s Park as Sarina Wiegman discusses the November squad selection ahead of our fixtures against Switzerland and the United States. https://t.co/RaAMDyRFQV

— Lionesses (@Lionesses) November 19, 2024

“That gives us so many learnings about individual players and about the team which is necessary to take away in preparation for the EUROs. This is the way we talk to players to get the bigger picture.

“We want to give clarity on things and in this camp, some things may not be clear because we’re experimenting because when you play two friendlies, you want to experiment a lot. From that comes clarity.

“It’s so important to figure out things and see players. That gives us so much information. Of course, we play to win – we always do – but at the same time, we’re experimenting. If we play well and get those things out of it, for me, it’s successful.”