England boss Sarina Wiegman admits it will be “very special” when her side take on her native Netherlands in Tuesday’s Nations League contest in Utrecht.
Wiegman played for the Dutch national team before overseeing their Euro 2017 win on home soil and finishing as runners-up at the 2019 World Cup in France.
The 53-year-old, who has subsequently matched those managerial achievements with England, told a press conference that being back in her home country with the Lionesses was “very nice, a little bit strange too – of course I have some memories here”.
She added: “I’m really looking forward to tomorrow. It’s just very special to be here and to play the opponents.
“Of course we know each other really well, I know the staff, most of the staff didn’t change that much, or the players. Lots of people will be in the stands that I know.”
The match is England’s second in Group A1 after they beat Scotland 2-1 in Sunderland on Friday, when the Netherlands opened their campaign with a 2-1 loss away to Belgium.
Wiegman said: “We had a good review on the (Scotland) match.
“We want to do a couple of things a little better, and keep doing the things that we did really well, bring that to the next level too – that’s what we talked about, and then tomorrow we go again.
“I think if you look at the stats against Belgium they (the Netherlands) had pretty good stats. You see how the game developed and they were a little bit unlucky, and Belgium took advantage of that.
“Of course they want to do well because their goal also is to come first in the group, so with the first loss they really want to do well tomorrow and have a good result. That is what we expect.”
The Nations League offers two qualification places for the Paris 2024 Olympics, with England the nominated home nations team aiming to secure a spot for Great Britain.
To do that they will need to win their group to advance to the Nations League’s last four, and then reach the final, or come third should France make the final.
Wiegman said she had every member of her squad available for Tuesday’s game, including Alessia Russo, who sat out the Scotland contest – she had joined the group later than others following some recuperation, having played in Champions League qualifying matches for Arsenal earlier this month.
Wiegman was joined at the press conference by Russo’s fellow forward Lauren Hemp, scorer of England’s second goal against Scotland.
The 23-year-old Manchester City player said of the Dutchwoman: “Sarina is a fantastic coach. Ever since she got the job I feel like she’s taken this team to a whole new level, and for me personally I’m learning every single day.
“I feel like I’m getting so much better and feeling so much more confident as the days go by under Sarina. She’s unbelievable.”
Meanwhile, Wiegman has paid tribute to Megan Rapinoe after the two-time World Cup winner, who has been an influential figure in the women’s game both on and off the pitch, played her final game for the United States before retirement, a 2-0 win over South Africa.
Wiegman said of Rapinoe’s legacy: “I think she is one of the most important players. I think the US were the trailblazers in women’s football, and also (for) the position of women in society.
“I think we should be all very thankful for what she leaves behind. I have so much respect for her.”
Of her own players driving change, she added: “I think this group of women are very conscious of society too and using the platform in a positive way to change society.
“They are so outspoken and well spoken, they articulate themselves so well.”
T&T's Head coach Eve blast lack of support from fraternity
Trinidad and Tobago’s senior men’s Head coach Angus Eve pulled no punches, as he opened up about the lack of support received during his tenure.
Eve’s revelation came during a recent interview on the I95 sports radio programme, where he also disclosed that he was without a contract and was yet to have discussions with the Normalisation Committee (NC) regarding an extension, at that point.
“They (NC) are a little bit finicky to do something about it (the contract) because, the football fraternity, I don’t know if they want me to sign a new contract. I have not heard from any of them since I have been doing this job,” Eve said, referring to the lukewarm response from the TTFA Zones.
The tactician, who led the Soca Warriors to a fairly successful Concacaf Nations League campaign, where they got to the quarterfinal and registered an historic win over United States but lost the two-leg tie on aggregate. Still, they have a second shot at Copa America qualification via a playoff fixture against Canada scheduled for March 23.
“But they are a little bit hesitant to do anything because they are studying what the members will think. So, the members have not really shown me any support. Except the president of the South Zone Dennis Latiff and Ross Russell (North Zone president) who is my friend, no other president has reached out to me or spoken to us,” Eve disclosed.
Eve believes it would be prudent if he signed a contract before the Canada game, having achieved objectives, which also included Gold Cup qualification.
“We have never been in this place before. We have never reached out of the group stage and into the knockout stage and try to reach in the quarterfinals and semi-finals of the Nations League before. So, I think we have achieved all of our targets, all of our objectives that have been placed in front of us,” he said.
“Win, lose or draw. I could possibly not be the coach (after March). Through the whole tenure it has been like that. I think there is a distinct lack of support. A lot of the things you read on social media is like if people don’t want me in the job, so I tend to want to focus on the guys,” Eve noted.
The outspoken coach also alluded to the challenges faced with getting the twin island republic back to this point of competitiveness.
“It has been a re-building process, and it has gone pretty much better than we expected. Nobody expected us the way we got into the A, nobody felt that we belonged, and we were under pressure from the first match,” Eve shared.
“Also, there was some other stuff happening behind the scenes with some of the older players and it probably took a little of the focus away from the homing in on the games. We were fighting against a lot of stuff, and I think that the staff and the Normalisation Committee pulled together, the people who support us.
“We insulated ourselves and I think you saw the fruit of that re-building where we won three of the four games and that was fantastic,” he ended.
Teams all set for next year's inaugural Concacaf Women's Gold Cup
The November-December window of the Concacaf Women's Gold Cup qualifiers concluded recently, with the field for next year's inaugural Concacaf Women's Gold Cup completed.
During the window, eight teams qualified for the tournament, with Mexico, Panama and Costa Rica securing spots in the group stage, while Puerto Rico, Guatemala, Haiti, Guyana and Dominican Republic progressed to the Prelims.
Here is the full list of teams currently qualified for the 2024 Women's Gold Cup.
Group Stage
United States -The four-time FIFA Women’s World Cup winners clinched their place in the Gold Cup when they defeated Canada 1-0 in the final of the 2022 Concacaf Women's Championship.
Canada -The 2020 Olympic Gold Medal winners punched their Gold Cup ticket after defeating Jamaica 4-1 on aggregate in the Concacaf Olympic Playoff.
Mexico -Mexico qualified to for the group stage as winners of Group A of League A in the qualifiers.
Panama -Panama qualified to the group stage as winners of Group B of League A.
Costa Rica -Costa Rica qualified to the group stage as winners of Group C of League A.
Brazil -Brazil are one of the four invited teams to the 2024 W Gold Cup. Brazil were winners of the 2022 Conmebol Copa America Femenina.
Colombia -Colombia another invitee were runners-up of the 2022 Conmebol Copa America Femenina.
Argentina -Argentina another invitee was the third-place finisher at the 2022 Conmebol Copa America Femenina.
Paraguay -Paraguay, by virtue of their fourth-place finish at the 2022 Conmebol Copa America Femenina, were also invited to the Concacaf Gold Cup.
Prelims
Puerto Rico-Puerto Rico were runners-up in Group A of League A.
Guatemala -Guatemala bettered Jamaica to place second behind Panama in Group B of League A.
Haiti -Haiti placed second in Group C of League A.
Guyana -Guyana finished tops in Group A of League B.
El Salvador -El Salvador topped Group B of League B.
Dominican Republic -Dominican Republic topped Group C of League B.
Massimiliano Allegri demands big push for points before halfway mark in Serie A
Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri has challenged his players to rectify the club’s wretched recent results against rivals Napoli to move top of the Serie A table.
Juve have lost five of their past seven league meetings with the reigning champions, including a 5-1 thrashing in January, but are favourites for Friday evening’s clash at Allianz Stadium.
The in-form Bianconeri sit second in the table and will climb above leaders Inter Milan for at least 24 hours by registering an 11th victory of the season.
Fifth-placed Napoli are struggling to mount a title defence and, having last month reappointed former boss Walter Mazzarri after sacking Rudi Garcia, slipped 11 points adrift of Inter following a 3-0 home loss to them on Sunday.
“Tomorrow will be very tough,” Allegri told a press conference.
“Napoli stayed in the game against Inter until the second goal and we’ve only beaten them once in our last seven meetings – that’s something we need to put right.
“They’re a dangerous side away from home and have picked up 17 points on the road already.”
Juventus are just two points behind Inter, with whom they drew 1-1 on November 26, following a nine-match unbeaten run.
Allegri wants a minimum of six points from Juve’s next five fixtures to ensure the club reach the halfway point of the campaign in a stronger position than last term.
“This is a six-pointer – we have five games left before we reach the midway point of the season and they’ll all be difficult,” said Allegri, whose side finished a disappointing 2022-23 campaign in seventh position.
“Our target is to finish the first half of the campaign with more points than we did last term, when we had 38.
“We hope to achieve our target but we mustn’t take it for granted.
“Part of this job involves dealing with the pressure but we have to remember the league doesn’t finish tomorrow. There’s still a long way to go.”
Mazzarri, who initially managed Napoli between 2009 and 2013, beat Atalanta 2-1 in the first match of his second spell before the resounding loss to Inter.
The 62-year-old hopes his team can kick-start a revival by beating one of their fiercest rivals.
“Juventus v Napoli is a match that we know well because of the special sensations it generates and the importance of two teams that have been protagonists of the championship in recent years,” he told a press conference.
“We are playing against an opponent who is doing very well and there is little to add about the depth of the match.
“We go there as Italian champions and we want to highlight the progress that the boys are making.
“If we look at the squads, I don’t think there is as much of a difference as the league table says. This is also true compared to Inter.
“Unfortunately in football there are also moments and this is not a brilliant period for Napoli, especially in relation to the great last season.
“In football sometimes it doesn’t take much to make a change, it’s a question of trust but also of luck.
“There are moments which are going badly but a positive episode can change the wind.”
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