Impetus has the latest news from England’s second tier with reports from Reading, London City Lionesses, and Crystal Palace (15/9/23).
Above: Reading boss Liam Gilbert, who spoke to the media earlier this week. Photo: Reading FC Women.
Reading
by Mia Kipling (15/9/23)
Ahead of Reading’s home game with Southampton this weekend, Royals boss Liam Gilbert reflected on the challenge ahead both on Sunday and longer term.
Taking over as Reading ahead of the season was a big step for Gilbert upon leaving Oxford United as manager.
One of the challenges he faced on taking over in Berkshire was a loss of 13 players, and when asked about this, Gilbert said: “The best thing about coming in fresh to this, from my side of things we haven’t lost anything.
“I’m coming into a group that is brand new, it’s a new collective, the mindset and mentality we use is that we’re a new entity. we’re making a fresh start here for every player whether your brand new or you’ve been here for four, five years that we’re now going to be a collective.”
Reading had a disappointing WSL campaign last season, avoiding defeat in only five of their 22 matches. Gilbert reflected on how he wants to improve this season “We want to have our identity with the ball and we want be a team that is enjoyable to watch. We’ve got some players that played in the Super League last year that play with us that are very technically good. We know that we now can try get the best out of them.”
Reading and Southampton have played once before this weekend’s game, back in November 2022 with Reading winning 3-0 (Troelsgaard 5’, Wade 38’, and Vanhaevermaet 60’). The Royals will be looking for a repeat performance on Sunday to record their first win of the campaign after three successive draws. Conversely, the Saints stand in third.
A knock-on of Reading’s relegation from the WSL was the move to becoming part-time after associated issues with the parent men’s club. Gilbert doesn’t see this adversely impacting the club at all, and highlighted how: “From what I see, the club’s not part-time. We’re at 2:50pm now and there’s two players sat doing analysis with the assistant coach.”
The Royals’ chief speaks highly of all his squad who he refers to “a group of players that are going above and beyond to be the best version of themselves and be the best they can be for the football club.” He is firmly of the belief that the club has “a group…that are all pushing each other and pulling in the same direction.”
London City Lionesses
London City Lionesses this evening announced another key arrival as defender Paige Culver joined on a one-year contract.
The Canadian, formerly of Frauen Bundesliga club Turbine Potsdam, arrived at Princes Park ahead of the transfer deadline and is available for selection this weekend.
“England is such a growing environment for women’s football and it felt like a really exciting opportunity when I spoke with the coaches about the project they are working on here,” said Culver.
“I’m a big communicator, which is one of my strong suits. I like to lead on the field because I’m able to see the whole pitch as a centre-back. I like to distribute possession, so hopefully that’s something I can bring that will help contribute to the success of the team.”
The 26-year-old has amassed a wealth of professional experience across top-division spells in Italy, France, and Germany. Oakville-born Culver played four seasons in the NCAA with Kent State University, for whom she emerged as a defensive mainstay and made 80 appearances.
Transfers to Pink Bari (Italian Serie A), ASJ Soyaux, Girondins Bordeaux (French D1), IFK Kalmar (Swedish Damallsvenskan), and Turbine Potsdam (German Bundesliga) followed for the talented defender, who is excited for her first experience in England.
“I’ve dipped my hand into a lot of different leagues, which has been great,” she explained. “You learn a lot while moving around different countries, so I’m excited to be here, settle in, and bring my experience from those leagues to help the team and prove myself here.
Head Coach Carolina Morace added: “Paige has a lot of experience and has played professionally in many countries around Europe. We needed an expert player to join us at centre-back and I think she will help us a lot because it is a long season and it is also important to have many players who are comfortable in her position.
“The centre-back position has changed the most in the last decade, with how many passes those are players to expected to complete. She’s tall, and we like that, and we are confident she will fit into our style of play.”
Crystal Palace
by Ben Gilby
Crystal Palace have announced the arrival of attacker Lucy Watson on loan from Chelsea.
The 19-year-old arrived at the WSL champions in July 2022 from Sheffield United on a two-year deal and originally went out on loan to Palace’s South London rivals Charlton Athletic before suffering a devastating ACL injury just over 12 months ago.
Watson’s arrival at Crystal Palace looks set to provide the young attacker with a chance to step up her recovery and have more game time among a Palace time that looks set to be mounting a strong push for a place in the WSL next season.
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