Sarina Wiegman insists she would change nothing despite criticism from Mary Earps | OneFootball

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England head coach Sarina Wiegman has broken her silence after she was criticised by former Lionesses goalkeeper Mary Earps over her decision to reintroduce Hannah Hampton to the squad.

Hampton was dropped by Wiegman after Euro 2022, with reports at the time stating it was because of the goalkeeper’s poor attitude.

She was recalled in March 2023, a decision that did not sit well with then No.1 Earps, who has criticised the decision in her new autobiography ‘All In’.

Earps’ comments about Wiegman and Hampton were the big talking point, as Wiegman announced the England squad for their upcoming friendlies with China and Ghana.

What did Sarina Wiegman say about Mary Earps?

Sarina Wiegman is not concerned about any divisions within the England camp following comments by Mary Earps on the England head coach and Hannah Hampton.

Earps criticised Wiegman’s decision to bring Hampton back into the England squad, accusing the Chelsea No.1 of “derailing training sessions” at Euro 2022. Hampton ultimately surpassed Earps in the England pecking order, with the latter retiring from international football before Euro 2025.

Wiegman, while trying not to speak too much on the matter, admitted that Earps’ reality could be different to that of her own, but said her decisions were made for winning games.

She said: “We have conversations with different players all the time. What my reality is and what someone else’s reality is can be different because how you experience things is very individual. I just know what I want to do is create an environment where we speak up and have clarity.

“Also, I make decisions to win. And what I’ve said all the time is that we have two incredible goalkeepers and at the end I made that decision to the one I came to, and that’s what it is for me.”

Asked if she would have handled things differently looking back, she added: “I think I would have done exactly the same thing. We kept communicating every time. We try to support everyone in the best possible way. I just can’t control how it comes across. There are always learnings, but I don’t think in the bigger picture I would have done things differently.”

Sarina Wiegman “cherishes” memories working with Mary Earps

Despite the criticism aimed at her by Earps, Wiegman said she enjoyed working with the current Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper.

She said: “What I should say also is I really, really enjoyed working with Mary [Earps]. She’s retired now. We had incredible times and I’ll always cherish that.

“What I’ve tried to do is to be as honest as possible and have a really good working relationship and I think we had that. I can’t control the other things. So I just stick with what I want to do, how I want to do it, and to be as clear as possible and to make decisions to win.”

Wiegman added that she has spoken to Hannah Hampton, but did not acknowledge whether they addressed the comments by Earps. She added that she had not spoken to her former No.1 goalkeeper. 

Meanwhile, Earps recently stated she hopes to reconcile with Wiegman in the future.

Why is Hannah Hampton not in the England squad?

Hannah Hampton will miss England’s upcoming games against China and Ghana after suffering a quad injury against Arsenal.

The England No.1 missed Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with Liverpool at the weekend, and she won’t be ready to feature for the Lionesses this month.

Her injury, though, presents a chance for Khiara Keating, who made her England debut in last month’s 2-1 defeat to Brazil. 

What did Earps say about Hampton?

In her autobiography ‘All In’, Earps said she told Wiegman that bringing Hampton back into the squad was “rewarding bad behaviour”.

She said that Hampton’s conduct at Euro 2022 “frequently risked derailing training sessions and expressed her displeasure with the decision to bring the Chelsea goalkeeper back, feeling it undermined the positive atmosphere and team morale.

Hampton ultimately overtook Earps in the pecking order, forcing the latter to retire from international football before Euro 2025.

A number of former England players, including Farah Williams, Eni Aluko and Anita Asante, have given their opinions on Earps’ comments.

Chelsea boss Bompastor, meanwhile, defended captain Millie Bright after she decided not to speak out on the matter.