England head coach Sarina Wiegman was delighted for debutante Lucia Kendall after the 3-0 friendly win over Australia.
And in conversation with ITV presenter Laura Woods and pundits Ian Wright and Anita Asante after the match, she talked about Kendall’s stand-out qualities – and assessed how she fared in her first match in senior international football.
“She did really well,” said Wiegman. “She has impressed me and my staff since the start of the [Women’s Super League] competition with Aston Villa. She did also really well in the training sessions.
“She picks up very good positions, she reads the game really well, she understands things – that just comes with her. She keeps things really simple, but that’s not always easy.
“So she has impressed us too, that’s why we thought she deserved the start today.”
Wright replied: “I wasn’t shocked when she got the call-up. Her first game was at Arsenal, WSL, she was fantastic.”
And Wiegman went on: “She is very young and very powerful. She opens up space for other people. She really looks around, she scans really well with her player, when she receives it she knows what’s happening behind her. She also wins duels.”
Lucia Kendall: I felt at home with England
For her part, Kendall seemed to be taking it in her stride.
“It was amazing, to be honest,” she said after the game – having picked up the player of the match award. “I felt at home. The girls are so easy to play with. You’ve got world-class players on that pitch. It was easy just to fit in.”
She revealed that Wiegman had told her on Monday that she would be playing from the start on Tuesday.
“She just said go and enjoy it, play how I’ve been playing at club, just take it all in and play with a smile on my face.”
And there were some special guests in the crowd there to cheer her on.
“I had my family here. It just made it that bit more special, sharing that moment with them after they’ve put in so much sacrifice.”
And she concluded: “When I was a little girl, you couldn’t have even dreamed of that. To be able to go out there, to a sell-out crowd, playing with a team that’s just won back-to-back Euros is really special.”
