Wales midfielder Carrie Jones addressed the reasons behind her move from Bristol City to Sweden, as she and Wales prepare to face Slovakia.
After getting relegated from the WSL with the Robins, Jones made a big move in the summer from Bristol to Norrköping in Sweden.
The transfer did seem to come out of the blue a little bit, but Jones explained why she decided to leave the English system and head to the Damallsvenskan.
“I had to stay open minded over the summer, and it would be silly if I didn’t keep an open mind. I had a release clause, and it was at the very last minute that Norrköping came in. I thought about it, and it was something that I couldn’t turn down.
“It’s been a massive change for me, and it all happened so quickly. It was a really tough decision to make, but having had a month out there now, I’m really content with the decision I’ve made, and I truly believe it was the right one for me.
“Having looked at the last two teams I played for, it was more out of possession football than anything else but looking at the history of the Swedish league and how young players develop and move to leagues like the WSL, it shows the quality in the league.
“It’s a move I couldn’t turn down.”
Having battled for relegation in two successive seasons with both Leicester City and Bristol City, a move to southern Sweden represents an opportunity to play a new brand of football; one that mirrors what she’s doing with Wales.
“It was part of the reason I went out there. At Wales now, we’re playing more of an attacking style of play, and I wanted to marry it up with what I was doing at club level in order to get the best out of myself.
“My strengths are when I’m on the ball, and I want to exercise that ability more.”
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Central role
At club level, Jones is becoming more of a central midfielder, and that might be a benefit to Wales, especially heading into this camp.
The Red Wall has seen Jones play as both a winger and a lone striker, but having a deeper role allows the youngster to express her freedom and trickery.
As she develops and improves, Jones sees her future in the centre and wants to push on in that area of the pitch.
“I do believe centrally is predominantly where my strengths lie. However, wherever I’m asked to play, I will try to showcase my strengths there, but centrally is where I can express myself more than anywhere on the pitch. It’s where I play my best football.”
There is currently a vacancy in the middle of the park, as former captain Sophie Ingle isn’t available for the foreseeable future.
While her absence represents an opportunity for others, not having the Chelsea veteran around is a blow, and Jones hopes her teammate can get back to full health quickly.
“Sophie is a huge loss to us, not just on the pitch but her character as well. We all wish her the best in her recovery. For us as a team, all the youngsters here have had to step up at some time. That’s our job, and hopefully, we can do Sophie proud.”
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Playoff chances
Jones and her Wales team will head out to Poprad later this week, as Wales take on Slovakia in the first leg of their European Championship playoff semi-final.
While many may see this as a David vs. Goliath situation, Jones certainly does not and is aware of what Slovakia can offer.
“We are all excited. There’s a lot of noise around us, but for us as a team, we’re fully focused on that first game against Slovakia. We’re keeping our feet firmly on the ground, and we know we’ve got a big challenge coming up.
“They will be a tough team to come up against, but we’ve done a lot of analysis on them and we’re looking forward to it.”
The word ‘playoff’ itself brings with it a lot of baggage and hurt for this Wales team, who lost to Switzerland in the 120th minute the last time they participated in one.
Jones admits there has been no mention of Switzerland but believes what’s happened in the past can be utilised in a positive manner this time around.
“As players, we all know what we experienced out in Switzerland, and it did hurt a lot. But we are all focused on each game as it comes and keeping our feet on the ground.
“All that’s important now is that first leg against Slovakia. We are fuelled from the experiences we’ve had before, and we want to take that into the next game.”
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