Leah Williamson has said England are “not robots” and immune to pressure on them as one of the tournament favorites before the start of the local European Championships at Old Trafford on Wednesday night.
“There will be nerves,” the captain said. “We’re aware of the expectation, but from inside the camp it’s about enjoying it.”
Sarina Wiegman echoed this and said it would be weird for her team not to feel nervous and excited. “We know the tournament starts tomorrow and we’ve been waiting for it for a long time,” the coach said. “It’s an exciting time, and it would be very strange if we don’t feel excited. We just do the same things we always do: we just focus on our style of play as individuals and as a team. “
Expectations are high. England is the most invested national team in Europe and the Gameplan for Growth strategy launched by the Football Association in 2017 aimed at the team’s success at Euro 2022 or the 2023 World Cup.
Williamson said the team was “in a fantastic place,” despite the managerial carousel that began with the departure of Phil Neville for the Inter Miami men’s team in January 2021.
“We’ve been working for the last few weeks, for many weeks, we’ve ticked the boxes we had to tick, but we also know how big a moment it is during the summer,” he said.
“We know what it is, we know what to expect and we are ready for it. Everyone has their things in place so they can deal with them. Pressure is a privilege, so it’s something we’re accepting and it comes with that, it’s part of the job. “
Speculation continues about where Williamson will play, as Wiegman has experimented with her in midfield and in the central defense position he holds at Arsenal. “I want to be on the pitch playing in England,” Williamson said when asked where he wanted to play. “I’ve never played in a European Championship, so for me, going out to England is enough.”
Wiegman would not be drawn where the captain would line up. “I think he can play on both, in midfield and on defense,” he said.
More than 517,000 tickets have been sold for the tournament, more than double the 240,000 sold for Euro 2017 in the Netherlands. In a pre-tournament briefing, FA women’s football director Baroness Sue Campbell noted the opportunity she presents to boost the game across the continent. “As well as trying to break all records to make this an iconic event, we also recognize that women’s gaming is growing across Europe and this is a fantastic opportunity to really take it to the next level,” she said. dit.
FA tournament delivery chief Chris Bryant said “we want this tournament to be everywhere” as they try to break records even further. For Williamson, “everywhere” has meant seeing his face in drink bottles, crunchy packages and, more recently, projected on Tower Bridge.
“Yeah, it’s not normal, is it?” said the 25-year-old. “But it’s good, it means that our visibility as a team and the women’s game is being recognized, as it should be. It’s weird, but it’s good. “
In 2013, the current head of women’s football at Uefa, Nadine Kessler, won the European Championship with Germany. The conditions of the female players of that time were far from those faced by the players participating in this tournament. “It’s completely incomparable,” Kessler said.
“It may have to be a little provocative, but I think in my time people were more concerned about whether their shirt fit than the actual outcome of the match. So we’ve come a long way. People are being treated as the right athletes and it’s a profession for more than a few. There’s been a big change in culture and mindset. “