Wiegman’s war of words with Norway manager
SARINA WIEGMAN hit back at Norway boss Martin Sjogren after he said England are under ‘massive pressure’ ahead of their Euro 2022 showdown tonight. Both teams won their opening games — the Lionesses beat Austria 1-0 while Norway thrashed tournament debutants Northern Ireland 4-1.
This evening’s match will likely decide who tops Group A, and Sjogren believes his side are the ‘underdogs’ — with England the ones weighed down by expectation. But Lionesses head coach Wiegman insisted that there is just as much pressure on Norway. ‘I think Norway has to win too to top the group,’ said Wiegman. ‘We want to win, it’s easy to say the pressure is on. We know what we want, we want to play our best game, to entertain, and of course we want to win games. ‘It’s nice that they’re trying to put pressure on us. We’re just working on our game and how we want to play. If they want to be the underdog, that’s fine. ‘They have a very strong squad and we do too. They’re able to attack a little more (than Austria). I expect a very competitive and open match.’ Norway have former Ballon d’Or winner Ada Hegerberg back leading their line following her return to international football in May after a five-year absence in protest at a perceived lack of support for female footballers in her country. While Hegerberg gives Norway an extra threat for Wiegman’s side to defend against, the England boss insisted she was happy to see the star striker return. ‘Every player from that level you hope to be in the tournament because it’s so good for the women’s game,’ said Wiegman. ‘But they have some weaknesses and we hope to exploit them.’ lFRANCE
put down a marker in Group D yesterday as they thrashed Italy 5- 1. Grace Geyoro’s first-half hat-trick sent her two clear at the top of the tournament goalscoring charts, while Marie-Antoinette Katoto and Delphine Cascarino also found the net. Martina Piemonte scored a late consolation for Italy. Meanwhile, Reading’s Justine Vanhaevermaet equalised from the spot in Belgium’s 1-1 draw with Iceland after Berglind Thorvaldsdottir’s opener.