Women’s World Cup final will be fourth major final in Wiegman’s career, one of the most illustrious in women’s football.
After guiding England to the Women’s World Cup final on Wednesday, just over a year after they won the European Championship on home soil, coach Sarina Wiegman seemed stunned.
“I never take anything for granted but it’s like, am I in the middle of a fairytale or something?” she said.
Wiegman’s ruthless Lionesses beat co-hosts Australia 3-1 in the semifinals in front of a large and somewhat hostile crowd and will take on Spain in the final on Sunday, bidding for their first-ever Women’s World Cup title.
The clash in Sydney will be the fourth major final in Wiegman’s career, which is one of the most illustrious and successful in the women’s game.
In 2017, Wiegman led her native Netherlands to Women’s Euros glory before guiding them to the World Cup final in 2019, where they lost to the United States.
Heading into this year’s World Cup, Wiegman was among just 12 female managers out of 32 coaches but by the time the tournament reached the quarterfinals, she was the only female manager still in contention.
If Wiegman goes on to lead England to glory, she will become the first England manager – men or women – to lift multiple major trophies.
Wiegman’s reign as England’s manager has already turned heads in the country, where fans are confident “it’s coming home” – 57 years after Alf Ramsey guided them to glory in the men’s World Cup at Wembley.
Since taking over the role in late 2021, Wiegman has transformed England into a competitive and resilient team, which has lost just once – to Australia in a pre-World Cup friendly – in 38 games.
“Her record for England has been nothing short of extraordinary,” BBC Sport’s Emma Smith told Al Jazeera. “She has taken a side which had shown great potential in 2019 [where they finished fourth] and drawn out its full potential.
“What has been the most remarkable part of her tenure has been the ability to both harness and use momentum as it has built behind the England team, and also overcome significant challenges such as injuries, issues over pay and bonuses, and concerns about squad selections, to the extent that they have faded into the background when compared to the sheer weight of momentum which England have.”
According to freelance journalist Philip O’Connor, the major reason for Wiegman’s success with England is that she has the trust of her players.
“Her managerial run has been outstanding. I cannot think of a better coach in the game right now,” said O’Connor, whose Global Gael podcast covered Ireland’s World Cup journey in detail. “Her game planning is second to none, and she is excellent at adjusting her tactics on the fly.”
O’Connor added that Wiegman, in stark contrast to her predecessor Phil Neville, had a record and a reputation in the women’s game that spoke for itself.
“While other coaches have had a tendency to try to put square pegs into round holes, she has treaded the fine line between getting her best players on the pitch and getting the most out of them brilliantly,” he explained.
