How To Solve A Problem Like England’s Defence? – Sport Grill
With fresh questions swirling around England’s Women’s World Cup preparations, how does Sarina Wiegman solve England’s defensive crisis?
Following confirmation of Leah Williamson’s Anterior Cruciate Ligament injury sustained a week ago, England Lionesses manager – Sarina Wiegman now faces a tough conundrum over how to proceed with her defensive plans for the Women’s World Cup.
Chelsea’s Millie Bright meanwhile is a serious doubt which raises more questions for Wiegman if she finds herself without her two main centre-backs, given that Williamson is definitely ruled out whilst Bright’s position is unclear.
Barcelona’s Lucy Bronze meanwhile is a concern at right-back after she suffered a knee injury against Chelsea in the first leg of their Women’s Champions League semi-final, which has led to keyhole surgery putting her spot in the squad at risk if she doesn’t feature before end of this season.
Wiegman though has several options available but how does she solve a problem like England’s defence heading into the World Cup?
Tactical Shake-up in Squad Selection
Wiegman has deployed Rachel Daly in the forward selection for England’s last two international windows but given Daly’s versatility, the simplest option could be to shift her to left-back which in-turn would allow Alex Greenwood to shift to central defence alongside Bright.
That approach would therefore enable Wiegman to introduce another tactical option up front with another forward – likely with one of Bethany England or Nikita Parris returning , whilst knowing that Daly could still be utilised in that role if needed during the tournament.
Should Bright however be unavailable then stick with Daly in defence with Greenwood becoming first-choice centre-back, and add further experienced defensive alongside current young central defensive options; Lotte Wubben-Moy, Esme Morgan, Maya Le Tissier and Lucy Parker.
Another alternative if Bright is available but Wiegman wants to keep Daly up front could be to recall Demi Stokes, and deploy the South Shields born fullback in the left-back position whilst having Daly as an alternative in that position as well as up front.
Gamble on Youth
Sincw winning UEFA Women’s Euros last summer, Wiegman has experimented with the additions of three young defenders; Morgan, Parker and Le Tissier (pictured) who have all successfully integrated with the core defensive selection.
It is therefore possible for Wiegman to not deviate from her plans too much by keeping Daly up front and Greenwood at left-back, and instead bring in at least one of Le Tissier, Morgan or Parker to replace Williamson or two if Bright is ruled out in central defence.
Le Tissier and Morgan though have only six caps between them whilst Parker is yet to earn an international cap, meaning that this trio would be a gamble especially given that they’re unproven at major tournaments.
Unlike Morgan and Parker, Le Tissier also is capable of playing in either fullback position which could propel her further up Wiegman’s thinking if Stokes isn’t under consideration, whilst allowing Wiegman to add further central defensive cover.
Wiegman however could well have no option other than to gamble on youth especially if there are any further defensive injuries within her core selection, which could open up opportunities for unexpected call-ups to inexperienced players like Anna Patten, Poppy Pattinson or Maz Pacheco.
Utilise Experience
Although Wiegman seems to be favouring a blend of youth and experience like at the Euros, it is the experienced defenders who currently are suffering injuries at present which throws up serious questions.
With Bronze and Bright both looking doubtful whilst Williamson is definitely out, it leaves only Greenwood who boasts a strong wealth of international experience out of Wiegman’s most recent defence who are currently not injured.
In fact if put the international experience of Greenwood, Jess Carter, Wubben-Moy, Niamh Charles, Morgan, Le Tissier and Parker together, they have only 114 caps in combined total which has to be a slight concern if want to win the World Cup especially if Bronze and Bright are out.
Add Daly to defence and that wealth of combined international experience rises to 182 caps which is a much stronger number.
I though do expect Wiegman to look at recalling Manchester City’s Steph Houghton (pictured) to provide more experience, given her incredible wealth of international experience with 121 caps and leadership skills – having previously captained the team at 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Wiegman’s biggest issue with recalling Houghton however lies in the fact that the 35 year-old is yet to play for England under Wiegman’s reign, yet Houghton might be Wiegman’s only realistic option if want to take someone with mass experience and leadership skills to the World Cup in defence.
Either way, Wiegman faces a massive conundrum in terms of her defensive selection at this summer’s World Cup, with many options open to her in terms of getting round Williamson’s absence.