Sarina Wiegman said that experiencing a tense penalty shootout four months before the World Cup was vital experience for her side, after England secured victory over Brazil in the Finalissima at Wembley.
“The team did really well, showing resilience,” the manager said. “I am happy, it is good that we have this information. Experience [helps] you recognise situations – how you feel with that walk to the penalty spot with 83,000 people screaming. It really helps, and shows again that we can do it.”
England were forced to work hard for victory at Wembley, with Andressa Alves cancelling out Ella Toone’s strike in injury time to force penalties.
“In the first half we played really well,” said Wiegman. “They played a little differently. We had a lot of possession, created chances and scored an incredible goal. We had hoped to score more than one. They went back to 4-4-2 and then we struggled. You saw two different halves. Then they became dangerous, we got out of the press sometimes and were offside which didn’t help.”
The England captain, Leah Williamson, said the team “just didn’t come out the way we should have” in the second half. “We were rocky, complacent, and not good on the ball. A team like Brazil will take advantage of that.”
There were no fears for the penalty shootout, though, as she said: “We looked down the list, and those penalty takers were incredible for us. And Mary [Earps], we know how good she is in goal. I wasn’t worried at all.”
She added: “I think it might be time to get a trophy cabinet. Everybody’s got their eyes on the World Cup. Today was a little stop in terms of what the focus is on. Every time you win, it makes you want to win more.”
The Brazil manager, Pia Sundhage, described Andressa’s equaliser in front of more than 83,000 fans as leaving a “feeling that all of us will remember”.
“Everyone went crazy, which is great,” she said. “You had the happiness and belief in the shootout we could win but then we lost. At this moment I think it’s hard. But this is not the World Cup, it is the journey to the World Cup, and we are learning so many things. This young team experienced a great team like England – one of the favourites – and also a big crowd. You have to enjoy these moments and I think we did in the second half.”
