What did manager Mark Sampson have to say after England’s very effective 2-0 win in Leuven…
After a competitive first half in a lively atmosphere, on a balmy evening, with few openings for either side, England re-jigged their shape a little and stepped up a level to score two goals and round off another fine qualifying campaign. What were Mark Sampson’s thoughts after the win?
Mark Sampson on the performance and result:
Yeah we did have to work but it was a really good win for us tonight. I’ve just said to the players, ‘Don’t underestimate that win. We’ve come to a difficult stadium, the pitch was difficult (much more difficult than we’d anticipated), the crowd were brilliant for them and they’re a good team, Belgium. They’re really well organised, they really made it difficult for us. With five defenders and a big physical presence across the team. It’s the first time in a long time that during the anthems in the line-up I’ve thought, ‘Wow, they’re a much bigger team than we are.’ They caused us some problems with their direct play but the I thought the character of our team was good and in the second half we were a different team. We found the right shape, the right balance to our play, found good pockets with Carney – she’s class isn’t she – and in the end we won comfortably, against a very good opponent.
On changing it around at half time:
I think we were just struggling to secure the ball in forward areas. It was maybe a little bit to do with the pitch and also a little bit poor technique. They surprised us with playing five defenders. This is the first time they’ve changed their shape in two years. Their defenders were really aggressive and it’s difficult for a centre forward when a centre half is allowed to wrestle you, so it was tough. But in the end we managed to free up Keets down the middle, to keep them stretched and Jill and Jordan put a real shift in to open the channels with some forward runs. We saw then the pockets appear for Karen Carney and picked the right pass. So much improved second half performance but pleased with the resilience in the first half as well. You hear that crowd going and it’s difficult to remain composed and calm and we did, we managed the game defensively and with the ball, which is something we need to be better at, so I was pleased to see that. And another clean sheet, pleased with that too.
On how the game and environment were a great experience:
We’ve talked a lot about it, actually, since the Estonia game. You’re not going to be able to replicate a European Championship match but we’re not far off with this one are we? Right next door, similar stadium, similar type of crowd, similar type of opponent. I think that Belgium team will cause a lot of teams difficulties in the summer and that result, come next summer we’ll look back and see what a good result it was (a team that beat Norway not so long ago and beat Russia5-0). Good result, great experience for us in terms of learning and from my point of view a clean sheet, two good goals, really good play which is important.
On Scotland’s qualification and win in Iceland and looking ahead to next summer:
Congratulations to them. A really good result that is, over there after what happened in their home game. It just shows the competitive nature of the European Championships, you’re going to have to be a team that can show many different sides. You have to compete physically, you have to be organised defensively and have a potent attacking threat. We showed some of those qualities tonight. I’m pleased we’ve booked our seat on the plane, top of the group, only conceded one again. That’s two campaigns now with only two goals conceded in total. It’s a record to be proud of.
On what needs to happen between now and next summer:
We need to get fitter. That’s the big shift. We’ve set a really strong base now in terms of their fitness levels. We’ve got to be the fittest England team ever going into this tournament. So we’ve set the bar high. The players will go away now with our support and also just keep working hard. I’m really pleased with this camp. We’ve played with a different system again, kept two clean sheets, scored seven goals in two games, lots of positives but we’ll review it, come back together in October and try and beat France.
