Anna Signeul hopes her first and last major tournament as Scotland’s manager will be remembered as a watershed in the game’s evolution in the country.
After 12 years in charge the 56-year-old Swede will head for Helsinki and a role coaching Finland in September. First she aims to take her team beyond the group stage – and preferably by upsetting England on Wednesday night.
Much to Signeul’s delight Nicola Sturgeon will be at the game. “I’m very proud the first minister is coming – and it’s her birthday too,” she said. “We’ll eat a birthday cake afterwards, which is something we do seldom nowadays.” Signeul, who feels “half Scottish”, acknowledged victory would represent “the biggest achievement of my career – and I’ve had a fantastic career”.
England, quite apart from ranking among the tournament favourites, look in formidable shape after working with the fitness coach Ben Young, who has trained the England rugby union side as well as Saracens.
“We’re definitely up for the challenge,” said Signeul, who has been reassured by the stringent security surrounding the game after threats it could be targeted by Islamic militants. “It does highlight how vulnerable we are in today’s society,” she said. “But we trust the fantastic security. It’s not really about us, it’s more that we were maybe worried about our families coming to the game.”
Scotland could not wish for a more ostensibly peaceful base than Utrecht, with its church bells and art galleries and where countless bicycles whizz up and down its ancient alleyways and canal towpaths.
If the menace of Signeul’s side has been reduced by injuries to Kim Little and Jennifer Beattie, she does have the prolific City striker Jane Ross.
With the settlement of a potentially damaging dispute between the players – almost half of whom juggle jobs with playing for Scottish clubs – and the Scottish Football Association over “respect and financial recompense”, she hopes Euro 2017 will help underwrite a better future for the game in her adopted country.
“This competition is so important to sell the game to young girls,” Signeul said. “Doing well would give players more opportunities to become as good as they can be, with more professional contracts and maybe semi-professional teams in Scotland. For the moment we have 11,000 players but that hopefully grows to maybe 20,000.”
