Arnold Clark Cup: 'England win another trophy but tougher tests lie ahead'
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England have extended their unbeaten run under Sarina Wiegman to 29 matches
Victory at the 2022 Arnold Clark Cup gave England a taste for success - but this year's edition felt more like a box ticked with greater ambitions in mind.
They had already proven themselves winners with their Euro 2022 triumph and went into this year's Arnold Clark Cup as heavy favourites against lower-ranked opposition.
Ultimately, the tournament was intended to prepare the Lionesses for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, which kicks off in July, and it went pretty smoothly.
Apart from a brief scare in their second match against Italy - which they eventually won 2-1 - England's superiority was on show throughout and they confirmed their status as Europe's best.
Experimentation and heavy rotation were used by Sarina Wiegman throughout the three matches but with the world keeping a watchful eye on England, winning was a timely reminder of their threat.
"Of course when you go into a tournament you want to win it. But what I said before this week was we wanted to try out lots of things and that's exactly what we did," said Wiegman.
"It was really good. Yes, I'm happy with the week, happy with the win and also how we have worked together."
England achieved their objective of defending their crown and extended their unbeaten run to 29 matches in the process.
They have won every tournament they have entered under Wiegman, lifting three trophies in 12 months, and go into the World Cup full of momentum as they seek to win it for the first time in their history.
But were England tested enough?
Millie Bright and Leah Williamson started together at centre-back during Euro 2022
Despite the perfect outcome, questions remain over whether England were tested enough during the tournament.
"It is good to win but there is another level that I think England need to go to... ahead of the World Cup," former Lionesses captain Steph Houghton told BBC Radio 5 Live.
Last year, all four teams in the Arnold Clark Cup were ranked inside the world's top 10. This month, England, ranked fourth in the world, did not face anyone higher than 15th.
Belgium, who reached the quarter-finals of Euro 2022, have not qualified for the World Cup but were England's nearest competitors going into the final round.
"In some moments we have been tested," said Wiegman. "Last year when we played deep, defensive blocks we struggled a little bit. Now, we did a little better.
"We expect of course in the World Cup to be challenged more against top-level opposition. These teams [at the Arnold Clark Cup] are improving very much but so are we."
Former England striker Ian Wright described the Lionesses' victory as "very professional" and believes they showed enough to cause problems at the World Cup against the best teams.
"Yes, we are better than the teams in this tournament, but at the same time I think we're going to be better than quite a few teams in the World Cup," he told ITV.
"We've gone into these games with a good attitude. We've played a good pace and we've been very ruthless."
More questions than answers for Wiegman?
Lauren James got a goal and an assist in two starts, winning player of the tournament
Wiegman named the same starting XI in all six Euro 2022 matches but rotated heavily throughout this tournament to look at different options.
"There's a time and a place to experiment. The Arnold Clark Cup was a perfect opportunity to do that - when you've got three games that are quite close together," added Houghton.
"There are a lot of young players that haven't had that much experience with England so this was a perfect chance for them."
Wiegman admitted before Wednesday's victory that she was unsure on her best XI with standout performances from Lauren James, Alex Greenwood and Rachel Daly ensuring she has some thinking to do.
Daly, who has been used as a left-back under Wiegman, scored both goals in the victory over Italy after starting up front, where she has been playing for Aston Villa and provides competition alongside Manchester United regular Alessia Russo.
Meanwhile Chelsea forward James, deservedly named player of the tournament, scored in the opening victory over South Korea and came off the bench to provide an assist against Italy.
With injured Ballon d'Or runner-up Beth Mead still a doubt to be fit for the World Cup, it seems like a three-way battle for two starting roles out wide between Chloe Kelly, Lauren Hemp and James, who more than helped her case during this tournament.
Former England forward Eniola Aluko told ITV: "What is great is there is no drop-off in quality. Whether it's Lauren Hemp or Lauren James [who plays] it doesn't matter."
Manchester City defender Alex Greenwood also put in three strong displays at centre-back and left-back positions to strengthen her case for selection.
England still have fixtures against Australia and Brazil in April to play which will give Wiegman another chance to find her best team.
"I don't have to make those decisions now. We make the decisions for April and players go back to their clubs too. So still lots of top-level games to play," said Wiegman.
"They're really competing and we're growing in depth so it will be really hard. I think we have more than 11 players who can start and lots more who could compete for the squad so that's good."
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