Six questions confronting England as they prepare for next summer’s Women’s World Cup
England trained at St George’s Park on Monday as they prepare for Tuesday’s Women’s World Cup playoff second leg against Greece, following a 3-1 first-leg victory in Crete on Friday.
England have two tasks: avoiding an upset to progress past Greece on aggregate in the playoff, and sharpening their style ahead of next summer’s World Cup in Brazil, where the final will be at the Maracanã in July; Friday’s relatively uninspiring 3-1 result in Crete left room for improvement and the squad trained at St George’s Park under gloomy-looking clouds on Monday.
Defensive consistency is one of the core concerns, with Sarina Wiegman saying she was not happy her team had conceded in Crete and noting stopping counterattacks as something they must fix; England’s defending also drew criticism after June’s 4-0 defeat by Spain and from their struggle to handle quick breaks in April 2025 when losing in Belgium.
England’s final-third inefficiency was evident in Crete: they had 58 touches in Greece’s box and converted those into three goals, whereas Greece had two touches in England’s box but managed to score and hit the crossbar; Wiegman said: "The execution in the final third. We got in good positions but then it’s [about] staying onside, having the final pass, the right pass at the right moment, the run at the right time, and deciding what cross or cutback you’re going to choose." World Cup qualifying also saw England win 1-0 and 2-0 against Iceland in matches where they could have been more clinical, while Spain, the world’s No 1 side, beat Iceland 6-1 and 3-0.
The No 10 role remains unsettled after a year of experimentation: Jess Park, Lucia Kendall and Laura Blindkilde Brown have been tried alongside Lauren James; Ella Toone has been dropped and recalled; Grace Clinton was a late squad addition; Erica Meg Parkinson made her debut on Friday; and Beth Mead can also operate in that position, with Wiegman commenting: "There’s a lot of competition on that position, where we have a lot of options, which also means, tactically, we can do different things. You can call it a ‘question mark’ – I call it many options."
Wide roles present mixed clarity: Lauren Hemp is seen as the left-wing starter, while the right side is less certain after Chloe Kelly was omitted; James remains an option centrally, the uncapped Freya Godfrey has impressed for London City Lionesses, Blindkilde Brown started on the right on Friday before being replaced at half-time by Mead, and there have been growing calls for 20-year-old Chelsea midfielder Lexi Potter to be handed her debut with the 21-year-old Godfrey also potentially in line for a debut on Tuesday; Keira Walsh said of Potter: "a really good thing that she’s finally being appreciated for how good she is", adding: "Her intelligence gives me confidence, knowing that she’s perfectly capable of stopping the counter." Esme Morgan described Parkinson as a "smart player, really tidy on the ball, with incredibly good movement".
Off the field, the biggest unresolved issue is Wiegman’s future, with her contract running until the end of the World Cup; there have been no reasons to suspect the squad are unsettled by the uncertainty, but the topic is likely to be raised in England press conferences until there is clarity. Walsh said: "Obviously I’d want her to stay. I think everyone in England would love her to stay. I really appreciate her as a manager but it’s her decision." Wiegman did not wish to discuss the matter, saying: "We’re only focused on Greece and I don’t want to talk about me."
The immediate focus is Tuesday’s second leg in Leicester, which will determine whether England progress past Greece on aggregate to reach the final tie of the playoff; Wiegman has confirmed she will make changes for the return match.