Sarina Wiegman faced the press after announcing a 25-strong squad for this month’s friendly games against Germany at Wembley and South Africa at the CBS Arena.

Here is what she had to say after revealing her selections.

On her squad selection:

"Of course it’s nice to bring in 25 players. We’re really happy we’ve qualified for the EUROs already because we can play four friendlies against really good teams. It will show us where we are. We can see how players relate to each other in our environment and try out things in games. I can’t wait to get started."

On this autumn’s opponents:

"I’m very excited for the games – and we could pick our opponents too. We play against many different styles in the upcoming games, which is exciting, and we have to be at our top level to win those games. It’s an opportunity to see more players, although last year we did also play many players in the Nations League.

"Germany are top level, they’re very physical and have top technical players too. They’re strong, physical and bring a certain level. South Africa are very different, they have a lot of pace and gave countries a hard time at the World Cup with their counter-attack. We have to be at our top level to play well against them and beat them. USA have very good front players and won gold at the Olympics. They are top level."

We're LIVE from St. George’s Park as Sarina Wiegman discusses the October squad selection ahead of our fixtures against Germany and South Africa. https://t.co/badwEJJUJn

— Lionesses (@Lionesses) October 15, 2024

On the selection of Chloe Kelly:

"She’s in a hard position. Manchester City are in a very good position and they’ve stepped up in terms of quality this season. There is huge competition at the highest level and she’s competing for that. She’s not getting the minutes we hoped for but she’s built credit with us and it wasn’t in doubt she’d be in. Playing minutes is very important but she’s competing to play at a top club."

On Khiara Keating’s omission:

"Khiara is a very good keeper but we spoke to her club (Manchester City) and we want her to get fitter and sharper, which it’s better to do in that environment."

On Mary Earps’ start to life at PSG:

"Mary is the number one keeper at PSG. Moving to France, she’s taken time to adapt and unfortunately they didn’t qualify for the Champions League group stage. That’s not the start she hoped for but we know what she brings us and there is a huge competition going on between her and Hannah [Hampton]."

On Fran Kirby’s start to the season:

"She’s very happy. She’s so smart, has such good vision and understands the game really well. I’ll have a chat with her next week but it’s great to see Brighton start so well and to see her own form."

On young players such as Aggie Beever-Jones and Jessica Naz:

"They’re very talented players but they need time too. When they come into our environment we want to see them challenge. They need to respect their teammates and keep pushing but they will need time."

On competition for places in defence:

"In defence there is competition going on. It’s been a year since Lucy Parker was in the squad and she’s started the season well. We think she’s very talented and we want to see her in our environment. Same with Esme Morgan, we want to see these players in training and how they relate to each other. It gives us a lot of information ahead of next summer."

On whether she’d prefer to be playing competitive games:

"No. We want to play at our top level. There is competition within the team and the players want to perform. That is challenge enough."