'Sarina Wiegman is paving the way!' - England star Georgia Stanway hails coach's influence and insists Lionesses 'need' her to stay after World Cup final journey

• Stanway hails Wiegman
• Wants head coach to continue with the Lionesses
• Linked with a move to USWNT and Dutch men's team

WHAT HAPPENED? After guiding England to the Women's Euro 2022 title win, Wiegman led the Lionesses to the final of the 2023 Women's World Cup where they lost to Spain 1-0. Despite the defeat, English midfielder Georgia Stanway felt that the team needs the head coach to continue and hailed her for her services to the national team.

After the Lionesses' success in the World Cup, it was reported that the FA were considering offering Wiegman the England men's national team's coaching job if and when Gareth Southgate steps down. When asked if the men's coaching job was a sort of reward for Wiegman, Stanway claimed that women's football cannot be seen as a stepping stone to the men's game.

WHAT THEY SAID: Speaking to Sky Sports, Stanway said, "We need her. We absolutely need her. She has done amazing with what she has done so far, at the Netherlands and here as well. To be a female coach and paving the way for other female coaches is amazing. To reach four major finals in the last four major tournaments, it's class.

"As female footballers, we don't want the female game to be the stepping stone for the men's game. We want it to be football, and for people to enjoy the fact that we play football and we enjoy it, as do coaches. We're not a stepping stone, we're trying our best to get women's game on the map as much as possible and we will continue to break barriers and we will see what we can do."

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Other than the England men's team's job, the 53-year-old coach has also been linked with a move to the Dutch men's national team and the USWNT.

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WHAT NEXT FOR SARINA WIEGMAN? Wiegman's current contract with the Lionesses runs until 2025 and she is yet to make a decision on her future although, right after the World Cup final the coach hinted that she may stick around until the next edition of the flagship competition which is four years from now.