Rhian Wilkinson: Wales boss targets history in 'perfect' role

Rhian Wilkinson won 181 caps as a player for Canada

Becoming Wales boss has long been an ambition for Rhian Wilkinson.

Now in the post following Gemma Grainger's shock departure to Norway in January, Canadian Wilkinson is bidding to make her mark in the country of her mother's birth.

But even prior to Grainger's tenure as Wales head coach, Wilkinson had her eye on the role.

"When the job came up after Jayne Ludlow stepped down, I was sorely tempted to apply," admitted the 41-year-old.

"I thought what an amazing opportunity it would be, but I had already verbally agreed to another job, it wasn't great timing for me.

"When the job came up, I had decided that I was going to work on creating a league in Canada. I was invested in continuing to be there, but I couldn't sleep when I saw this job had come up.

"It's something I've been thinking about for a long time. It was the perfect job for me."

Wilkinson has spent the week assessing her players for the first time since being appointed as head coach.

And on the eve of her opening match as boss against Croatia in Wrexham on Friday, Wilkinson spoke openly about what she expects from her players on the pitch.

"I think I'm known for having possession with a purpose," she said.

"That's not to say we will dominate possession, I don't find that a relevant stat.

"I think it's really important where you have possession and how dangerous you can be.

"I like my teams to be brave enough to try something, even if it doesn't work.

"I want them to get on the ball and try again because it shows that they're pushing their standards and they're pushing each other as a team."

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Wales are the best-ranked side in League B4 of Euro 2025 qualifying - with Kosovo and Ukraine also joining Croatia in their group.

And while eager to show a degree of caution rather than setting overly ambitious targets before her first campaign as boss, Wilkinson admits Wales have to aim to make history by reaching the Euro finals in Switzerland.

"I try not to get too ahead; we talk about it very openly and we want to make history," admitted Wilkinson.

"This is something we want to do as a team, but we can't think that far ahead.

"We know we've got three Fifa windows before we even get to the first play-off and then there's the second play-off.

"We talk about it in terms of vision clarity and making sure we're all heading in the same direction, but then it's the next game and the performance ahead of us."