The magnitude of this fixture was felt during the week as Hayes made her return to England as the USA head coach in some style, holding a media conference at a pub in Camden, pulling pints behind the bar as she mingled with close friends and family in front of the cameras.

Wiegman said she wanted to win even more because of her friendship with Hayes, and the opportunity to do so in front of 78,346 at Wembley Stadium intensified her competitiveness.

But with big stars absent – the USA were without the ‘Triple Espresso’ front three of Trinity Rodman, Mallory Swanson and Sophia Smith, while England missed Lauren Hemp, Lauren James and Ella Toone – there was always a feeling it would be a meticulous tactical battle as opposed to an outright spectacle.

That was what fans got as both teams were well-drilled and cancelled each other out in an intriguing 90 minutes.

Wiegman vowed to experiment and “try new things out” and while there were just a few tweaks to the starting XI, this was a much better performance than their displays against Germany and South Africa.

There were subtle changes as England continue their preparations for next summer’s Euros – and a hint at Wiegman’s thoughts, with Mary Earps getting the nod in goal over Hannah Hampton.

England switched to a high press in the second half and made the USA uncomfortable, having rarely tested them in the first half. Alex Greenwood and Jess Carter swapped their centre-back and left-back roles. And Jess Naz was given a more defensive role in her right-wing position.

The Lionesses had to ride their luck at times too as Alyssa Thompson, Casey Krueger and Sam Coffey all forced saves from Earps – before the USA’s disallowed goal and overturned penalty.

It was not the dramatic encounter that maybe some had hoped for – instead, it was two of the best coaches in the world, and two of the best teams, cancelling each other out.