England boss Wiegman confirms changes to be made for South Africa fixture | OneFootball

England head coach Sarina Wiegman says that she will make changes to her side ahead of this evening’s international friendly against South Africa.

The Lionesses take on Banyana Banyana at The Coventry Building Society Arena in Coventry. The game comes four days after England were defeated 4-3 by Germany in an international friendly at Wembley.

Wiegman named a very familiar starting XI against Germany but the Lionesses struggled in that match, especially in their defensive third. When speaking to the media ahead of this evening’s fixture against South Africa, Wiegman confirmed that she will field a different line-up.

“You will see different faces,” Wiegman said. “I’m not going to tell you how many but you will see changes.

“We want to try out things, we want to see players and connections. Also, at the same time, with so many [club] games around this camp, you want to manage the minutes too.”

Going on to discuss South Africa, Wiegman says that her side will be tested both physically and athletically and that the Lionesses will need to be prepared for their opponents’ pace.

She said “We are expecting a very physical team, an athletic team. In moments, they can be unpredictable and they have a lot of speed.

“We want to face different styles of play. Having not had a lot of opportunities to play friendlies, I think this is a great opportunity to face South Africa.

“It will be another learning moment for us in terms of how we approach it. Can we dictate the game? Can we stay calm on the ball, playing forwards and staying out of the duels? We will also need to take out their counter-attacks with the speed that they have upfront.”

England have kept just two clean sheets in the current calendar year. Wiegman wants her side to improve their defensive record but highlighted the increased competition in the women’s international game.

She said “We have to look at the bigger picture. The game is improving and we are playing better opponents too with the Nations League coming on, so we have tough games all of the time which I think is really good because you’re being exposed when you don’t do things right.

“Of course, you don’t want to concede goals. We are looking at how we are conceding goals and how we improve on these moments. Sometimes, it starts with keeping the ball and sometimes, it starts with us wanting to press high then going full-press; do we have the trigger moments right or are we too expansive in those moments? Then, the tactics come in and we are working on improvements in that all of the time.”

England’s international friendly against South Africa kicks-off at 7.45pm this evening. Tickets remain on-sale and can be purchased by clicking here.