It was a night beyond any England fans’ imaginations. Sitting in the stadium, soaking in the atmosphere after the final whistle, it was hard not be filled with wonder about what we had just witnessed. For Sarina Wiegman and her Lionesses had just produced one of the most stunning performances in the competition to sweep aside a nation that will have been considered one of the strongest.
Martina Voss-Tecklenburg’s Germany side have at times slipped under the radar in the build-up to this tournament. A poor performance in the Arnold Clark Cup earlier this year – with the context of a heavily depleted squad – and a far from outstanding World Cup qualifying campaign have left fans and pundits alike wondering which team will show up.
It was a quintessential David and Goliath story as Norway and Northern Ireland kicked off their Euro 2022 at St. Mary’s on Friday evening. The tournament’s dark horses against the newcomers, making history with their inaugural major tournament. The result was perhaps predictable – Norway ran out 4-1 winners – but the moment belonged to Northern Ireland.
“Incredible. There are no more words. This is unbelievable,” lauded Sarina Wiegman as she sat in the press room after watching her England side open Euro 2022 at Old Trafford.
The same emotions will have been felt by many. Wednesday was a night like no other. The reception at the start, the booming renditions of Sweet Caroline, the 68,000 or so people singing and cheering along. It was one of those special moments, one to add to those events that imprint themselves in your memory for life.
England U19s face Germany in their final group game of Euro 2022 on Sunday evening. With a win and defeat in their opening two matches, they know that a victory is what is needed to see them progress to the semi-finals.
“Obviously, we’re disappointed and quite frustrated,” reflected Gemma Davies on a dissatisfying afternoon for England’s U19s. “We were slow coming out. I think generally we were quite sloppy, not making or connecting simple passes and perhaps forcing things that we didn’t need to. And I’m disappointed actually with our chances created.”
It has been a whirlwind few years for England U19s manager, Gemma Davies. From being handed the Head Coach role at Aston Villa back in 2018 to now being fully immersed in international youth football, it has been a learning curve for the young manager as she looks to establish her career in the sport.
“Relentless”, “attacking” and “exciting” were just a few of the words Gemma Davies, England U19s manager, used to describe her group of players on the eve of their first international championship. They showed these characteristics in abundance in a winning opening display – a 4-1 victory against Norway – that will have instilled a huge amount of confidence in this young side.
We’re used to managers and players playing down big or notable fixtures. “It’s just another game” they’ll say, “We’ll focus on ourselves”. But there is no denying that tomorrow’s friendly is going to be something special with it being the first time that England manager, Sarina Wiegman, will face her old side and homeland, the Netherlands.