Melvine Malard, who won the Champions League under Sonia Bompastor at Lyon, is aiming to do the same at Chelsea after reuniting with her former mentor. The France forward, who joined from Manchester United this summer, has already made an impact, scoring on her WSL and Champions League debuts for the club.
From Réunion to Stamford Bridge
Malard grew up on Réunion, an island east of Madagascar with a population of less than one million. At 14, she caught the eye of Bompastor at an under-15s match at Clairefontaine, and the Chelsea manager persuaded Malard's mother to allow her daughter to move more than 5,600 miles to pursue her dream.
Now, ahead of a London derby against Arsenal at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, Malard is excited about the prospect. "All players want to play this game," she says. "You train hard for these games against big teams in big stadiums with lots of fans waiting for you to play and score. I can't wait."
Ambition and confidence
Malard says she wanted to be somewhere that matched her ambitions. "It's for that reason that I'm here. I don't want to lose any time in my career. Football moves quickly and sometimes you need to make the choice that is best for your career. Coming here was a good choice."
She credits Bompastor and her assistant Camille Abily for their influence. "They played football, they know football, and when they speak with me I can't say anything because they know more than me. That can help you progress a lot. They set the level you know you need to be at to become a legend."
Chasing history
Malard believes winning the Champions League with Chelsea is the way to achieve that. "I want to write my name on a new page, but not any page, a page you remember. The way to do that with Chelsea is to win something the club has never won."
She has already shown her quality, coming off the bench in a 5-2 qualifying win over Real Sociedad to score twice, and scoring in a 2-0 win over Birmingham after returning from injury. Reflecting on her journey, she says: "When I look at the little girl from that island today playing for Chelsea and nominated for the Ballon d'Or, it's a lot for me to take in and a lot for my family. It gives me the motivation to continue this way and I'm very proud of myself."
