England 8-0 North Macedonia: Lionesses thrash visitors in Sarina Wiegman's first match
- Published
Manchester United midfielder Ella Toone scored the first goal under new manager Sarina Wiegman
Sarina Wiegman's first game in charge ended in victory as England thrashed North Macedonia to open their Women's World Cup qualifying campaign.
Playing in front of more than 8,000 fans at St Mary's Stadium, England put on a show to mark a new era.
Ella Toone scored on her first start, while Ellen White and substitute Bethany England netted twice.
Beth Mead capped off a brilliant display with a goal and there were also two own goals from the visitors.
It was a dominant performance by England, who easily could have scored double figures in what felt like 90 minutes of attacking onslaught, delivering 48 shots on goal.
Huge chances were missed by White, Lauren Hemp, Nikita Parris, Beth Mead and Toone, while Jill Scott hit the crossbar in the second half.
The Lionesses were never tested defensively and simply had too much quality for North Macedonia, ranked 131st in the world.
The heavy victory sees England move top of their qualifying group - which also includes Northern Ireland - nudging ahead of rivals Austria, who beat Latvia 8-1.
Northern Ireland marked their opening qualifying match with a 4-0 victory over Luxembourg, who are England's next opponents on Tuesday, 21 September (19:15 BST).
Wiegman gets goals as youthful midfield shines
Leah Williamson (second in from top right) captained the side for the first time
Wiegman said she wanted "lots of goals" from her side earlier this week, knowing they would dominate possession against a lower-ranked opposition.
They delivered.
While difficult to gauge their true level against North Macedonia, who are ranked 123 places below England in the world, a clean sheet, an attack-minded performance and a comfortable victory means they ticked all the boxes in Wiegman's first game.
And it should have been a bigger victory.
It was a sign of England's dominance that they went into the half-time break with a 3-0 lead feeling underwhelmed.
There were several missed opportunities in the first half in particular - with goalscorer White admitting she was "disappointed" not to have scored more.
But ultimately it was a hugely promising performance from England, who have lacked creativity and cohesion over the last two years.
The young midfield trio of Leah Williamson - captaining the side for the first time - Toone and Georgia Stanway impressed, while Mead's bright start to the season with Arsenal continued.
More ruthlessness will no doubt be called for by Wiegman but it was the perfect way to start her England career.
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