The reigning European champions face an improbable set of permutations on Tuesday night in Glasgow, but there are reasons for them to believe
When the full-time whistle went on Friday at Wembley, the England players looked devastated. They collapsed to the turf and pondered where they had come up short against the Netherlands with some, most notably Mary Earps, in tears. But the Lionesses hadn’t lost the game – they’d actually completed an incredible second-half turnaround to come back from 2-0 down to win 3-2.
The paradox of the result and the scenes on the pitch summed up the convoluted set of permutations England face as their Women’s Nations League group-stage campaign comes to an end in Scotland on Tuesday night. A victory by a two-goal margin at Wembley would’ve made things a lot less complicated and put matters more firmly in the Lionesses’ hands – and the players knew that, as they were knocking on the door to make it 4-2 when the referee called time on the match.
A simple way to look at it, though, is that if Sarina Wiegman’s side beat Scotland by a heavy scoreline, thus overtaking the Netherlands in the standings on goal difference, they can progress to the next stage. That doesn’t just mean they have a chance of winning a trophy, but also of booking Great Britain a spot in next summer’s Olympic women’s football tournament.
The Netherlands will take on a tricky Belgium side at the same time on Tuesday, one that has already beaten both the Dutch and England, so there is certainly a chance that they drop points. But the Lionesses will be fully focused on their own task, on beating Scotland and rubbing salt in the wounds of their neighbours, who were relegated from League A of the Nations League after a draw with Belgium on Friday night.
After that remarkable turnaround at Wembley, England will have a lot of confidence that they can defy the odds once more to keep their Nations League and Olympic dreams alive. There are plenty of reasons to believe, in fact, as GOAL picks out five of them…
Getty ImagesOne of the best coaches on the planet
At half-time on Friday, with the Netherlands 2-0 up, England looked down and out. They’d lacked rhythm to their play in the first 45 minutes, there were too many errors and the Dutch had been incredibly ruthless. But the team never gave up hope, which is a testament to the culture in the dressing room, and Wiegman stepped up to show why she’s regarded as one of the best coaches in the sport.
A couple of tactical tweaks, which included addressing the overload the Netherlands had created in midfield, and the introduction of Beth Mead – which raised an eyebrow or two simply because it took a relatively lively Chloe Kelly off the pitch – helped to make England look like an entirely different team in the second half, sparking a truly incredible comeback. “I’m a human being, of course I have doubts in my mind,” Wiegman admitted after the game. “But we have to make decisions and I think we did that pretty well.”
The Dutchwoman hasn’t been without fault in her England tenure and there are issues that have built up during her time with the team that have contributed to this precarious situation, one which leaves the Lionesses’ chances of making the Nations League finals in serious jeopardy.
But she has also reached four major finals – winning two of them – since 2017. This is one of the best coaches on the planet, and she showed just what she is capable of on Friday. Knowing that she could well do so again on Tuesday doesn’t just give England a greater chance of topping their group, it will also give the players a lot of confidence.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesBeth Mead’s return
It was no coincidence that England’s comeback on Friday came after Wiegman had introduced Mead at half-time. It was the Arsenal star’s first appearance for her country in over a year, after a cruel ACL injury left her sidelined for a lengthy spell that included the Women’s World Cup, and she made it a return to remember. Mead added conviction to the attack, most notably playing a great pass into Georgia Stanway in the build-up to the Lionesses’ equaliser, allowing the Bayern Munich midfielder to tee up Lauren Hemp to level the scores.
“She had a very good impact,” Wiegman said afterwards. “It’s really impressive, coming back from injury, building with Arsenal, and then playing an international game of this level, this environment, 70,000 people, I’m very proud of her.”
"The days when I've struggled in the gym, long, hard training days of not being able to play football and do the thing that I love, it makes it worthwhile to run out there in front of such a big crowd, getting a great reception and a ruthless second half of football,” Mead added.
Whether or not she is ready for a bigger role in Tuesday’s game against Scotland, the return of her world-class talent is a huge boost for this England team, especially with them likely to need to rack up the goals in Glasgow.
Getty ImagesLauren James’ form
Another forward of incredible quality who made a serious impact on Friday was Lauren James – and it wasn’t even one of her best performances. There was plenty of intent from the Chelsea star, who picked the ball up in dangerous areas and drove at the Dutch defence to try and make things happen. Often, she found her aim was just off, with a few shots flying off target, but she stepped up in the second half to help orchestrate the comeback.
Given the time and space to look up and pick out a team-mate just before the hour, James whipped in a gorgeous cross in her typically nonchalant manner, one that landed perfectly on the head of Stanway as the Bayern Munich star directed the ball beyond Daphne van Domselaar and into the far corner.
In stoppage-time, from a near identical position, she repeated the trick, this time sending the ball towards the back post where Ella Toone was making an untracked run. It fell perfectly for James’ former Manchester United team-mate, who finished brilliantly through the legs of the goalkeeper to win the game for England.
This is a player in incredible form, someone who is currently tied at the top of the goalscoring charts in the Women’s Super League after a remarkable start to the season. Despite never really hitting top gear at Wembley, she showed real glimpses of that rhythm she’s in, with no player creating more chances on Friday than James.
When she is on the pitch, with that magic in her boots, England always have a greater chance of doing something special.
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GettyScotland’s sorrows
There’s something to be said about the position Scotland find themselves going into this game, too. Pedro Martinez Losa’s side were relegated from League A in the Nations League on Friday after a draw with Belgium. It’s been a difficult group-stage campaign for the team, with them putting in a couple of relatively decent performances – particularly the one against England in Sunderland – but also some really underwhelming ones.
Scotland’s cause hasn’t been helped by the loss of Caroline Weir, the talismanic Real Madrid star, to an ACL injury and, on Friday, there was further reason for concern when Erin Cuthbert, the talented Chelsea midfielder, came off looking a little worse for wear with a head injury. To lose her for Tuesday’s game would be another huge blow for a team that, despite putting in an admirable performance on Friday, will no doubt be feeling a little demoralised and low on confidence after relegation.
The rivalry between England and Scotland runs deep and the Lionesses’ neighbours certainly will not roll over despite having nothing to play for in Glasgow. But they will be vulnerable, and if Wiegman’s side can get a couple of early goals, their heads could well drop and England’s chances of recording the convincing win that is likely to be needed will improve.