As Arsenal Women make their final preparations for the Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain Feminine, Caitlin Foord may a bigger asset than first imagined.
Joining the club in January, Foord has made just two appearances for the club due to football's hiatus during the height of the pandemic. Scoring on her debut in the Women's FA Cup against Lewes was the perfect start before an eventual loss against Chelsea Women in the Continental Cup final.
Set to make her Champions League debut at Real Sociedad's Anoeta Stadium the new one-legged format will come as a norm.
Compared to team-mates accustomed with the home and away rule that has been scrapped this summer, the 25-year-old has become well-seasoned in knockout football at club and international level playing in World Cups, Olympic Games for Australia as well as club cup competitions in her native land and America, which she views as a benefit going into Saturday's game.
"I can only speak personally, I've never experienced the home and away series type of layout, so for me this, this feels normal to just have the one game," she told football.london .
"I'm sure for a lot of the girls that have been involved and have a lot of experience in the Champions League, it might be a bit different for them. But again, on that they've all played in World Cups and that's how the tournament's formatted and Olympic games. I think in a way it might be strange, but also, it's something we're all very familiar with.
"That is massive, especially with the current situation. Normally you have these games to prepare or normally the home and away series as well, it's not really done in one game.
"So I think it's more even more important to have the experience and with the players, I think almost everyone has had to play in a big match. I guess you can say big, big players, which will definitely come into play in this game, and I think that'll be important for us."
Considering the premature end to the 2019/20 FA Women's Super League season saw Joe Montemurro's side miss out on Champions League football for next year on a points-per-game based decision, more weight has been heaped onto their clash with PSG.
Heading into the game, the one edge the French side may carry is the fact they have played competitive football while the Gunners haven't. Arsenal conducted friendlies against Aston Villa, Charlton Athletic and Brighton - after which they had penalty shoot-outs regardless of the score - but Saturday's opponents have had Coupe de France Feminine matches against Bordeaux and Lyon to prepare for the intensity of competitive football.
Despite not having similar competition leading up to the quarter-final, Arsenal's friendlies have been vital. As followers of
Arsenal Women have come accustomed to since Montemurro's arrival in November 2017, the Australian has an incredibly fluid approach in the way he sets his side up.
The only way to truly achieve that fluidity, however, is through the practice of the patterns he wants to see on the pitch. Whether it be an overlapping full-back, midfielder dropping into the backline or the central striker dropping for an attacking midfielder to burst forward, these moves are all the result of what happens at London Colney.
Aware of this, especially with the movement of the Arsenal frontline in mind, Foord addressed how important it was to get those minutes in before travelling to Spain for the quarter-final.
"It's been massive [the friendlies], I think, for myself, but also the new players as well. There's quite a few of us so it's been good to get some minutes under our belt but as well as what you're saying the philosophy and style that we play at Arsenal," she said.
"To become more familiar with that, and get a bit more of an understanding of your team-mates and obviously for them to have a chance to kind of understand you as a player, which does take time.
"Obviously, we’re limited with time and with a lot of new players that does take time, but it is what it is, it's been good to get minutes and to have sessions and a good build up to get a little bit more familiar. In an important game, pressure game that's where these things show so it'll be interesting to see how the team gels and how the game pans out."
Arsenal Women will also be debuting the new off-white and maroon away kit during the game.
