Sarina Wiegman insists she will always cherish winning the European Championship with England but is focused on more success as the Lionesses switch their attention to the next tournament in 2025.
England will meet Germany at Wembley on Friday in a repeat of the Euro 2022 final, where Wiegman’s side won their first major trophy following goals from Ella Toone and Chloe Kelly.
Speaking at a press conference at St George’s Park, Wiegman said: “We will always cherish that – it’s one of the big moments in my career and life but now is now, moving forward it’s a totally different team.
“We’ve moved on and now is the start for the next Euros next summer.
“You always want to go faster but the level of the league has increased and so has international football, it’s developed which is what we want but means we need to develop as well.
“We just know where we want to be on July 2, and qualifying starts after tomorrow evening. So much has happened to the team since two years ago.
“They (Germany) have a new coach so may do other things, it’s a good challenge because we don’t exactly know what they will do but is a good experience for us to have tomorrow at the highest level.”
Captain Leah Williamson has returned from a long-term knee injury to reclaim her place at the heart of Wiegman’s defence and is likely to start on Friday.
Like Wiegman, the 27-year-old shares fond memories from two years ago but highlighted the focus on further success in Switzerland in 2025.
We will always cherish that - it's one of the big moments in my career and life but now is now, moving forward it's a totally different team
She said: “I’ll never get tired of talking about it but we have a new focus and a completely different tournament to play.
“It’s exciting and I’m sure there are many people in the stadium who would have loved to have been there two years ago.
“It’s lovely, a great memory but we have one (Euro win), they (Germany) have many. It’s a great fixture but we look forward to the next tournament.”
England have arranged four friendlies to be played over the next couple of months, with South Africa, the United States and Switzerland up after Germany.
The Lionesses have previously brought record crowds into Wembley for their matches.
Friday’s fixture sees a decrease, with an expected crowd of 54,000, but both Wiegman and Williamson think those numbers are still impressive.
Wiegman said: “It’s real positive we play at Wembley twice with over 100,000 people coming to the stadium.
“Of course Wembley can have more people, so hopefully more people can come but we are thinking big and having the opportunity for people to come to the game, we are happy with the amount of people coming to the game.”
Williamson added: “If you take the perspective of playing two games at Wembley so close to each other a few years ago it wouldn’t have happened – 54,000 is still a lot more than most countries will host.
“We have a vision, we have always dreamt the biggest but it’s a step in the right direction and hopefully the way we play tomorrow will bring more people for the next games – that’s our job.”
