Five reasons why England’s Lionesses can defy the odds in Scotland to keep Nations League and Olympic dreams alive

At half-time on Friday, with the Netherlands 2-0 up, England looked down and out. They’d lacked rhythm to their play in the first 45 minutes, there were too many errors and the Dutch had been incredibly ruthless. But the team never gave up hope, which is a testament to the culture in the dressing room, and Wiegman stepped up to show why she’s regarded as one of the best coaches in the sport.

A couple of tactical tweaks, which included addressing the overload the Netherlands had created in midfield, and the introduction of Beth Mead – which raised an eyebrow or two simply because it took a relatively lively Chloe Kelly off the pitch – helped to make England look like an entirely different team in the second half, sparking a truly incredible comeback. “I’m a human being, of course I have doubts in my mind,” Wiegman admitted after the game. “But we have to make decisions and I think we did that pretty well.”

The Dutchwoman hasn’t been without fault in her England tenure and there are issues that have built up during her time with the team that have contributed to this precarious situation, one which leaves the Lionesses’ chances of making the Nations League finals in serious jeopardy.

But she has also reached four major finals – winning two of them – since 2017. This is one of the best coaches on the planet, and she showed just what she is capable of on Friday. Knowing that she could well do so again on Tuesday doesn’t just give England a greater chance of topping their group, it will also give the players a lot of confidence.

It was no coincidence that England’s comeback on Friday came after Wiegman had introduced Mead at half-time. It was the Arsenal star’s first appearance for her country in over a year, after a cruel ACL injury left her sidelined for a lengthy spell that included the Women’s World Cup, and she made it a return to remember. Mead added conviction to the attack, most notably playing a great pass into Georgia Stanway in the build-up to the Lionesses’ equaliser, allowing the Bayern Munich midfielder to tee up Lauren Hemp to level the scores.

“She had a very good impact,” Wiegman said afterwards. “It’s really impressive, coming back from injury, building with Arsenal, and then playing an international game of this level, this environment, 70,000 people, I’m very proud of her.”

"The days when I've struggled in the gym, long, hard training days of not being able to play football and do the thing that I love, it makes it worthwhile to run out there in front of such a big crowd, getting a great reception and a ruthless second half of football,” Mead added.

Whether or not she is ready for a bigger role in Tuesday’s game against Scotland, the return of her world-class talent is a huge boost for this England team, especially with them likely to need to rack up the goals in Glasgow.

Another forward of incredible quality who made a serious impact on Friday was Lauren James – and it wasn’t even one of her best performances. There was plenty of intent from the Chelsea star, who picked the ball up in dangerous areas and drove at the Dutch defence to try and make things happen. Often, she found her aim was just off, with a few shots flying off target, but she stepped up in the second half to help orchestrate the comeback.

Given the time and space to look up and pick out a team-mate just before the hour, James whipped in a gorgeous cross in her typically nonchalant manner, one that landed perfectly on the head of Stanway as the Bayern Munich star directed the ball beyond Daphne van Domselaar and into the far corner.

In stoppage-time, from a near identical position, she repeated the trick, this time sending the ball towards the back post where Ella Toone was making an untracked run. It fell perfectly for James’ former Manchester United team-mate, who finished brilliantly through the legs of the goalkeeper to win the game for England.

This is a player in incredible form, someone who is currently tied at the top of the goalscoring charts in the Women’s Super League after a remarkable start to the season. Despite never really hitting top gear at Wembley, she showed real glimpses of that rhythm she’s in, with no player creating more chances on Friday than James.

When she is on the pitch, with that magic in her boots, England always have a greater chance of doing something special.

There’s something to be said about the position Scotland find themselves going into this game, too. Pedro Martinez Losa’s side were relegated from League A in the Nations League on Friday after a draw with Belgium. It’s been a difficult group-stage campaign for the team, with them putting in a couple of relatively decent performances – particularly the one against England in Sunderland – but also some really underwhelming ones.

Scotland’s cause hasn’t been helped by the loss of Caroline Weir, the talismanic Real Madrid star, to an ACL injury and, on Friday, there was further reason for concern when Erin Cuthbert, the talented Chelsea midfielder, came off looking a little worse for wear with a head injury. To lose her for Tuesday’s game would be another huge blow for a team that, despite putting in an admirable performance on Friday, will no doubt be feeling a little demoralised and low on confidence after relegation.

The rivalry between England and Scotland runs deep and the Lionesses’ neighbours certainly will not roll over despite having nothing to play for in Glasgow. But they will be vulnerable, and if Wiegman’s side can get a couple of early goals, their heads could well drop and England’s chances of recording the convincing win that is likely to be needed will improve.

England have so many players who are capable of stepping up and rubbing salt in Scotland’s wounds, too. On top of Mead and James, there was Toone on Friday with her winning strike and Stanway with a goal and an assist in the 3-2 victory. Hemp was lively, too, grabbing a goal for her efforts.

Also at Wiegman’s disposal is Alessia Russo, who came up big on several occasions during this year’s run to the Women’s World Cup final; Rachel Daly, last season’s WSL Golden Boot winner; Fran Kirby, one of the most talented players in the entire country; and Kelly, who has started this WSL season in truly electric form.

Wiegman was also keen to stress the importance of keeping goals out, too, though. It’s all well and good pouring forward to try and score five, but if you leave yourself exposed at the back, then it only makes your task harder at the other end. Fortunately, the coach is blessed with top talent in defence, too. Earps might not have covered herself in glory with the Netherlands’ second goal on Friday, but she is still one of the best goalkeepers in the world, and Wiegman will be keen to remind her of her importance to this team ahead of Tuesday’s do-or-die match.

Then you have the likes of Alex Greenwood, one of the best centre-backs on the planet; Jess Carter, who has had an incredible year in the heart of defence; Keira Walsh, the deep-lying midfielder who will be important in thwarting attacks, too, and is also among the best in her position, one she operates in for Barcelona, arguably the best team in the world.

Not all of these players have been at their very top level for England in recent months, with the Lionesses suffering something of a post-World Cup slump in the Nations League. But the quality and the depth of this squad is evident, and so many of these players have a history of putting in huge performances in the biggest moments.

Tuesday is another one of those and it’ll be up to these stars to use all their experience and talent to help England overcome the odds and have an opportunity next year to show that, as the reigning European champions and finalists at this year’s World Cup, they remain a serious contender for the top honours.