England women's boss Sarina Wiegman is not only a hero in her new adopted country, she is also a legend in her home nation the Netherlands.
She won two Dutch championships and the KNVB Cup as a player, as well as starring on the international stage. It was her performances for the national team that drew the eye of Louis van Gaal, a legend of the Dutch game following several stints in charge of the Oranje.
Astonishingly, given that she combined her time playing with a career as a PE teacher, Wiegman made 104 appearances at international level. She made her debut aged just 17 back in 1987, spending 14 years in total in the team.
That ensured that she gained her 100th cap in April 2001, the first Dutch player, male or female, to make that achievement. It would take Frank de Boer another two years to follow in Wiegman's footsteps to become the first male Dutch footballer to make 100 appearances at international level.
In recognition of her achievement, she was handed a special award by then men's national team boss Van Gaal, who paid tribute to her. He said: "I have a lot of respect for Sarina. For the men, everything is arranged. Here, this is much more difficult.”
Sixteen years later, Van Gaal was on hand again to hand Wiegman the award for being the FIFA Best Women's Coach. Wiegman had taken over as the Netherlands women's national boss in 2016.
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She led her country to winning the European Championships a year later, with that achievement enough to see Wiegman named 'The Best'. Van Gaal delivered the award to her, to the delight of Wiegman.
“That was really special. The actual award ceremony was last December, and it was [presented] online. I think it’s fantastic that Louis has come out here, also to present Vivianne with her award," she said.
“I said to him that it was 20 years ago that I played my 100th game for the Netherlands and he presented me with an award for that as well. He was coach of the men’s Dutch national team then, and now 20 years later he presents me with this great award, which is for the entire team of course – both players and staff.”
Wiegman would lead the Netherlands to being runner's up at the World Cup in 2019. She stayed on to guide them to the quarter-finals of the Tokyo Olympics, ahead of which Van Gaal was called in to deliver a message to Wiegman's team.
"Just look at the [men's] European Championship [side]. There you see a bunch of elite stars that can't do it. I've always seen that under Sarina there is a team that goes through fire. So make sure that you, as a team, go to the Olympics an go for gold," he said.
