β¨ Explore this insightful post from BBC Sport π
π Category:
π Main takeaway:
Wegman said she “can’t control” what Earps says or feels about her decisions but the England coach stressed she made them to give the team the best chance of success.
England will meet China at Wembley Stadium on November 29, before hosting Ghana at St. Mary’s Stadium on December 2.
The media conference to announce her team was dominated by questions for Earps and Wegman joked that “it would be nice to talk about football.”
The return of Manchester City striker Lauren Hemp and midfielder Grace Clinton make headlines in the 25-player squad for the friendly matches.
But former Netherlands coach Wegman admitted that dealing with adversity is part of her prominent role.
βOf course you hope things are always positive, but that’s not how things work in football when you’re visible,β she said.
βIt’s just the situation and you try to deal with it in the best positive way and resolve whatever needs to be resolved and move forward.
βI make decisions about what I think is best for the team to compete in the next camp or the next tournament β ββand I make decisions to win.β
Wegman was also asked if she was disappointed that Earps said her closeness with the Lionesses director had been “destroyed” and her “trust and respect had evaporated.”
She added: “I don’t think I can change that. What I’m trying to be is to be as honest as possible and have a very good working relationship, which I think we had.”
βI can’t control other things. I just stick to what I want to do, how I want to do it and try to be as clear and honest as possible to make decisions to win.
βI always keep conversations private. I share things here [in the media] But when I have one-on-one conversations I keep them private because that builds trust.
“If I do that, players will come up to me and talk to me. That’s my approach. We create an environment where we want people to be themselves.”
Chelsea goalkeeper Hampton is not in the squad for England’s final two matches of the year after suffering a thigh injury.
The 24-year-old won the Yashin Award for Best Goalkeeper at this year’s Ballon d’Or awards and was one of the breakout players at Euro 2025.
Wegman confirmed that she spoke with Hampton after the release of Earps’ book, but did not go into details of their conversations.
Wegman added: “I spoke to Hannah. I talk to the players between camps anyway. Unfortunately, she is injured now. But I spoke to her, yes.”
βWhat the content of that conversation is, as always, I will keep private.β
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