Excitement, Anticipation & Preparation – Barker’s Season Preview
- LCFC Women will embark on their maiden Barclays FA Women’s Super League campaign in 2021/22
- The Foxes took part in a pre-season friendly with Liverpool last Sunday as preparations continue
- Midfielder Sophie Barker sat down with LCFC TV to chat about laying the groundworks for the top-flight
- The experience City are able to call upon will be a big factor in achieving their targets, Barker believes
On Sunday, the Foxes were involved in their opening friendly ahead of 2021/22, playing Liverpool Women in a pre-season exercise at Belvoir Drive, primarily designed to increase minutes on the pitch for the majority of the squad.
And Barker revealed to LCFC TV that anticipation for the new campaign has only grown after getting back out on the pitch on Sunday.
The former Sheffield United midfielder commented: “It was really good, we got a chance to bond with the new girls, we’ve changed the style of play a little bit so it’s good to get practising really.
“Getting touches of the ball too because it feels like so long since we did, we haven’t played for a while. It was just nice to get back out there and we can’t really complain with the pitch that we played on, it was really enjoyable.
“You can feel it in the squad and in the staff, there’s a real excitement to get out there and show what we can do really.
“I feel like we’ve got a number of players that can go out and actually take it to some teams. It’s nice that I think we are going in there with no fear, I think we’ve got this underlining confidence.”
Six players have been recruited to the Club so far this summer and Barker believes the new signings have settled in well since joining the squad, bringing a mix of experience and freshness to the group.
While City were able to call upon a significant amount of top-flight experience during the FA Women’s Championship title-winning season, that will only increase with the additions made.
The midfielder explained: “We had the same at the beginning of last season as well with a brand-new squad and we’ve done similar here.
“But obviously the girls we’ve brought in are experienced, so they’ve been around the block and we all gelled pretty quickly really. They’ve brought their experience to the table, they’ve brought that professionalism, and it’s just upped everyone’s game a little bit.
“One-hundred per cent the experience showed last year, it was our cutting edge really to help us win the league last season. I think if we want to get the position in the table that we want this season, we’re going to need that experience.
“And it’s nice to have some more experienced players around us because the young players, they are very talented, they are very good, and the girls we’ve brought in are very professional and are very experienced.”
Discussing the pre-season schedule and her role for the campaign ahead, the 30-year-old is determined to ensure that the Foxes do everything they can to compete at the highest level.
“To be fair, it’s probably one of the hardest pre-seasons I’ve had,” Barker admitted. “It’s been hard for me personally playing ‘the four’, I know this season, I’m going to do a lot of running.
“We’ve done a lot of running and a lot of hard work and we know that the season is not going to be easy for us, we’re going to need everything we can really.
“There’s no excuses that you can’t run more than other players, so we’re kind of taking that to the fullest really. It’s been hard work, but enjoyable.”