Freya Godfrey has described playing alongside Alexia Putellas at London City Lionesses as like having a get-out-of-jail-free card, insisting the increased competition for places has only galvanised her.
The 21-year-old winger is coming off a breakthrough campaign, her first full season with the ambitious club. Six goals and four assists in the Women’s Super League (WSL) saw her named Player’s Player of the Season and rewarded with a new three-year contract.
Summer arrivals raise the bar
This summer, owner Michele Kang delivered the signings of Lyon star Kadidiatou Diani, Arsenal’s Rosa Kafaji, and Barcelona’s Alexia Putellas, widely considered to be the best female player ever. Godfrey’s first-team opportunities appeared to have been slashed, but she does not see it that way.
“I wouldn’t say I have more to prove, no,” she tells Standard Sport. “Last year, competition was still high, this year it is even higher. I am just really grateful to be in this position to have these opportunities. I’m 21 years old, competing with two of the best wingers in the world, going toe-to-toe with them in training. I’m going to get my chances, and they are obviously going to get theirs. I’m only gonna learn from all these experiences; I’m going to grow from it. It's a challenge I have to take on.”
Learning from the best
Despite the added competition, Godfrey has started two of London City’s four matches so far this season, both times alongside Putellas. She remains in awe of ‘La Reina’.
“I was talking to my friend this morning about playing with Alexia and how easy she makes everything,” she recalls. “Its like a get-out-of-jail-free card. You pass her the ball and you know she’s going to do something with it. You can just trust her to protect it, to create something. So for me as a forward, knowing that she’s always there with me to bounce off and lean on, it’s really easy. To play with someone of that calibre early in my career, I know how fortunate I am to be in this position. It's very exciting, the level that she’s brought to the team, as with the other new signings as well.”
European ambitions and home support
The impact of the summer arrivals has been felt off the pitch, too. “The standard this year has been pushed up a notch, and that is not just in football,” Godfrey says. “To have these people who are vocal about that and who want to drive the standards, that’s good for us as well, to see that and learn from.”
Those within the club make little secret of their European aspirations - the Lionesses are desperate to qualify for the Champions League this season - but Godfrey insists she does not feel under pressure. “Everyone’s different, but I wouldn’t say I feel much pressure. It's just taking each day as it comes and trying to build. We’ve had a decent start, we struggled against West Ham (in a 2-1 defeat), but we’re not the only team that dropped points. (The mood in camp has) picked up again this week now we’ve had two wins on the bounce. That’s definitely positive and hopefully we can use the momentum to keep pushing. We just have fun. It's nice that we can take the positives from the games and the football, and keep having fun together.”
Godfrey hopes for a similar turnout to the sell-out crowd which piled into Hayes Lane for the WSL curtain-raiser, where they dispatched Manchester United 2-1, when Brighton visit on Saturday. “(The fans are) massive,” Godfrey continued. “I think you can really feel the energy from our home fans, also the United fans giving us stick! You live to play in those kinds of games, that kind of atmosphere. We want to try and get that for all our home games this season. That will push us towards more wins.”
