Sarina Wiegman says she took the time to “acquaint herself with English culture” when she became in charge of the Lionesses, but admits it was not an easy decision to step down from her role in her home country.
Gareth Southgate questioned his future as manager of the men’s team.
Wiegman, who was appointed in September 2021, said: “My first thought was ‘can I leave the Netherlands?'”
The Dutchwoman, who won Euro 2017 with the Netherlands, added: “I grew up there, it’s my country.
“We were talking about extending my contract, then I just waited, that’s how it works in my head, I needed time to think and feel. It stuck with me.
“Most of the time when some people contact me about [whether] I am interested in a job, after a few days it would simply become “no, I will stay in the Netherlands”.
“But this one stuck with me. It’s very exciting, it’s a great country, England is a great footballing country, the Women’s Super League, the potential of the team… so I started having conversations.”
England remain unbeaten under Wiegman and won their first major women’s tournament this summer at Euro 2022.
They also qualified for the 2023 World Cup with a 100% record, having conceded no goals.
Discussions have taken place this week after England boss Southgate admitted he was ‘conflicted’ over his future after the men’s World Cup squad exit Qatar.
But asked specifically about her own decision to leave her home country, Wiegman said she wanted the FA “to know who I am” and vice versa before taking the job.
“These conversations went really well so I got really excited and noticed the FA got really excited and then we finally had a date,” she added.
“When I got there, I tried to find out more about [English] Culture. Although the countries are very close to each other, there are some differences, so I really tried to learn.
“I took English lessons in football. I said ‘I will learn more about your culture and try to adapt to your culture, but the franchise [of Dutch people]I’m not going to circumvent it or change that.’
“I think it went very well and we really enjoyed ourselves. We can still grow a lot. I think the FA, the players and the staff appreciate it too and I think we have a very good collaboration. “
