Wales Women return to Wrexham for Euro 2025 qualifier against Croatia

  • Wales captain Sophie Ingle said her side are "going to do everything we can".

Wales Women will kick-start their Women's Euro 2025 qualifying campaign in a match against Croatia this evening.

The game will be Rhian Wilkinson’s first game in charge since being appointed head coach in February.

Wilkinson's side will face Croatia at the STōK Cae Ras in Wrexham, with kick-off at 19:15.

They last played in Wrexham in March 2020, beating Estonia 2-0 in a friendly match in front of more than 2,000 fans.

Speaking ahead of the match, Wilkinson said: "It's a short lead up to this first camp but we can also be fully focused from the start. It's not long enough to get distracted, it's right there."

Rhian Wilkinson said the team need to be "fully focused from the start".

Wales captain Sophie Ingle said her side are "going to do everything we can".

She continued: "We know what are end goal wants to be or should be and these games are never easy, it doesn't matter if they're lower ranked teams or higher ranked teams.

"We have to go in there with the same mentality of 'we're going to do everything we can for ourselves, for the badge, for our staff and everything that we've put in to train in that week we have to deliver."

Taking their first home game of the campaign up north maintains their bid to be visible to all and boost fan engagement around the whole of Wales.

This will be a fresh chance for the team to qualify for a first major women's football tournament, after coming so close to qualifying for the last World Cup.

UEFA Women's EURO 2025, the 14th edition of the tournament, will be held in Switzerland next summer.

Since her retirement from playing in 2017, Wilkinson has taken on coaching roles, most notably with the Portland Thorns, leading her team to victory in the NWSL Championship in 2022.

Before her tenure with the Thorns, Wilkinson served as the head coach for the Canada U17 and U20 youth programs.

Additionally, she worked as an assistant coach for England and Team GB at the 2021 Olympic Games, as well as for Canada at the 2019 FIFA World Cup.

In her playing career, Wilkinson represented Canada in 183 matches, participating in four World Cups and three Olympic games.

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