The Celtic women are gearing up for a big season after beating the odds to land a Champions League spot in the final day of last season.
Fran Alonso and his ghirls came out of the blocks firing on all cylinders after the restart last term and totally justified their position in the league – narrowly missing out on the title.
One big reason for the success of the team last season was the goals Sarah Ewens contributed to the side. In fact, Sarah’s goals over the last five years have been pivotal to Celtic.
64 goals in 96 games for the club speaks for itself.
That’s why it was so surprising last week when the announcement came the striker had signed for Birmingham City.
It’s a massive blow for the club as they head into the new season.
Speaking to Claire Wilde on the Cynic Women’s podcast, Fran was honest enough to admit Sarah leaving is a massive blow,
“From the last five years, she’s been our top goalscorer for 4 years. Sarah had a dream for many years to play in England.
“She never had the opportunity because no teams showed interest. But obviously after the amazing season that we had, every single club in England look at Celtic and say ‘we want all their players’ because we did so well.
“In the case of Sarah, we all knew at the club that was her dream and of course, she still had two years on her contract and a fee was agreed. That’s what Sarah wanted, that was her desire.
“Sometimes we’ll do all we can do to make the best for the club and the players. It’s obviously a big loss for us, Sarah got 90 minutes most games so that’s a lot of minutes that will now go to other players who will now have the opportunity to shine.
“Overall, it’s a big loss but I think, the way we work and the way we like to promote young players, I think it will open new doors”
Fran and Celtic have already brought new faces into the fold over the past couple of weeks.
Defender Cheyenne Shorts is our most recent signing and she joins MarÃa Ólafsdóttir Gros (Winger), Shen Mengyu (Midfielder) and Tyler Toland (Midfielder) in a new look side.
Add to that both Chloe Warrington and Tegan Bowie signing their first professional deals, there’s a lot to be optimistic about.
Perhaps using some of the Sarah Ewans fee to dip into the market for a striker will be the next move.
To catch the whole interview with Fran, you can subscribe to the Cynic here. The hard working guys and girls over there do fantastic work on all parts of the club.
