Soccer-England shrug off Wales rivalry ahead of big game for title defence

The Star

3 days ago

FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - UEFA Women's Euro 2025 - Group D - France v England - Stadion Letzigrund, Zurich, Switzerland - July 5, 2025 England manager Sarina Wiegman before the match REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo
ST. GALLEN, Switzerland (Reuters) -The Lionesses' Dutch coach Sarina Wiegman has read up on the fierce rivalry between England and Wales and knows that it will be fuel for the Welsh women when they face off in a pivotal Euro 2025 game on Sunday at St. Gallen.
But Wiegman said her players will not get caught up in emotion and instead approach Sunday as another big game in defence of their European championship title.
"I learned about the history and the rivalry but we are focused on what we want to do and how we want to play," Wiegman said at a press conference. "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."
Victory over Wales will ensure England passage to the quarter-finals, while they would also advance with a draw provided the Netherlands do not beat France.
Even a loss to Wales by less than three goals, coupled with a Netherlands defeat, would put them through.
If opponents up their games against England, defender Alex Greenwood said she and her teammates have grown accustomed to having a target on their back.
"It is something we are probably used to now," she said. "That's the pressure we have invited because we have been successful and something we should be proud of," she said.
"As a team we don't focus too much on that. We focus on ourselves and the gameplan."
Wales, who lost to both the Netherlands and France, still have a shot of reaching the quarter-finals, although they would need to beat England by at least four goals and the Netherlands lose to France.
If there is added pressure on England's shoulders on Sunday, they showed in Wednesday's 4-0 thrashing of the Netherlands in what was a must-win match that it does not disturb their composure.
"We enjoy pressure, but we also thrive in those moments," Greenwood told reporters. "(Wednesday) was a high-pressure game and we performed under the highest pressure. Tomorrow becomes another high-pressure game.
"We're all really looking forward to it."
Sunday will mark Wiegman's 15th Euros game as a head coach, including six with European champions Netherlands in 2017. England's 2-1 loss to France last week has been her only defeat.
(Reporting by Lori Ewing in Oberentfelden, Switzerland; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)