‘Sarina Wiegman backed to complete stunning Premier League switch’
Sarina Wiegman has been backed to thrive as a Premier League manager following her exploits with the England women’s national team.
The Dutch coach has won two consecutive European Championships with the Lionesses, either side of a World Cup final — following on from finishing as runner-up at the 2019 World Cup final and winning Euro 2017 with the Netherlands.
That makes Wiegman the first-ever manager in either the men’s or women’s game to reach five consecutive major finals.
As is often the case with women’s managers, the debate will now rage as to whether or not Wiegman could translate her skills to the highest levels of the men’s game.
Wiegman backed to succeed in Premier League
Jamie O’Hara believes Wiegman would have no problem adapting to the switch, hailing the 55-year-old’s tactical intelligence and backing her to succeed in the Premier League.
“Unbelievable from the Lionesses. They’ve made it happen. Unbelievable from Sarina Wiegman as well,” O’Hara said on talkSPORT (28 July).
“I was thinking about it and having a conversation with a few people and saying, do you think that Sarina Wiegman… she’s basically completed football at women’s level. The World Cup is one that she might want to get her hands on. She’s come very close to it.
| Major tournament record | Sarina Wiegman |
| 2017 Euros | Winner |
| 2019 World Cup | Runner-up |
| 2021 Euros | Winner |
| 2023 World Cup | Runner-up |
| 2025 Euros | Winner |
“But she’s done unbelievably. She’s won three Euros on the bounce, which is just ridiculous. One with the Netherlands, two with England.
“Do you believe that she could manage in the Premier League?”
The former Tottenham and Portsmouth midfielder added: “If you gave her the right infrastructure, you gave her the right football club, you know, with the players who would respect what she’s about and respect what she’s done, and I think you get that from Premier League footballers.
“I genuinely believe that she could handle it tactically. She’s amazing in the press.
“Everyone loves her, what she’s about as a manager. She knows what she’s doing. She’s got a really good team around her.
“If you put that infrastructure that she’s got with England and you went and said, right, ‘I’m going to go and put this in at a Premier League football club’, I think she’d do well.
“I think she could handle it.
“The modern day footballer, I think doesn’t want a Mick McCarthy anymore. They don’t need someone to come in and give them a grilling and get on their case.
“She plays great football, style of football. We want to play out from the back. We want to move the ball quickly. She’s very calm. She’s collected. She’s done the business at the highest level.
“Tactically, she gets things right. She knows when to make subs. In tournament football, it’s different. I understand. I get that.
“I don’t think it’s different pressure. If you’re going into that Premier League, we’ve seen managers come with successful CVs and some of the other…
“It’s only pressure because she’d be the first.”
FA committed to keeping Wiegman
It would certainly be a landmark moment to see Wiegman take charge of a Premier League club, but it doesn’t appear to be a move that’s on the horizon.
FA chief Mark Bullingham faced questions ahead of Sunday’s win over Spain as to whether or not it would be difficult for the Lionesses to keep hold of their manager in light of her achievements.
However, Bullingham remained steadfast in his commitment to keep Wiegman in charge until at least the expiry of her contract in 2027 — and hopefully beyond.
“Not hard at all. We are committed to her until 2027 and she is committed to us. We have a new [coaching] team coming in for her,” Bullingham said (BBC, 24 July).
“We haven’t quite started working on the plans for [the 2027 World Cup] but I know her focus, hopefully after success on Sunday, will shift quite quickly to that.”