Interviews

Powell: We have to stay grounded

Albion face Reading this Sunday on the back of three consecutive WSL victories.

By Charlie Hanson • 19 November 2021

By Kyle Hemsley
Hope Powell's team have beaten Spurs, Everton and Leicester in their last three WSL matches.

Hope Powell says her team have taken heart from their recent run of form that has seen them climb up to third in the Barclays FA Women’s Super League.

Maisie Symonds’ last minute winner against Leicester City on Sunday made it three league wins in a row, moving them to within four points of Arsenal in top spot.

The Albion boss wants her players to take a game-by-game approach though, with Reading their next opponents.

By Kyle Hemsley
Maisie Symonds scored Albion's winner in last weekend's 1-0 victory over Leicester City.

“We take heart from the last three games and that we’ve kept clean sheets – you can definitely build on that and it gives you confidence going into the next game. The most important thing is we stay focused, we stick to our gameplan which is do the things that we are good at; working hard for each other and taking the chances when they present themselves.

“It’s very early on in the season, we have to keep our feet on the ground and not get ahead of ourselves – the game against London City Lionesses is a good example of when that doesn’t happen. Our ambition is to take every game one at a time and that’s exactly what we have been doing and what we will continue to do.

“We want to keep looking up and climbing the table and do better than we did last season. But the most important thing is we stay focused, deal with the task at hand and not get carried away.”

This Sunday’s game against the Royals will be a new test altogether from the win over a Leicester team who looked to frustrate Albion.

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WSL Highlights: Albion 1 Leicester City 0

“We know the qualities that Reading have – they will come out and attack more than Leicester did, they won’t go with a low block or get numbers behind the ball, they’ll probably be quite expansive. They’re a very technical side with good movement.

“We will need to be at our best again as we have to be every game in this league. It’s tough for us but we’re doing relatively well in the league – it’s about finding that consistency in performances and converting your chances.

“We’ve taken lessons from every game and the aim is to keep improving from our last performance, we’re not getting ahead of ourselves and we’re happy with our league position. But we know that can change very quickly.”