Manchester City Women celebrate at Manchester City Football Academy on 13 October 2021 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Lynne Cameron/Manchester City FC via Getty Images)
Like many of its rivals, injuries have taken a toll on Manchester City Women’s 2021/22 season. However, instead of buckling under pressure, the team continues to display amazing resilience.
City, which QNET has partnered with since 2014, has had to deal with the departures of key players in the close season and big names like Lucy Bronze being sidelined through injury.
Yet remarkably, others have stood up to be counted, including the club’s newest recruits.
There’s always a period of adjustment when new players come on board. However, our newest Sky Blues have hit the ground running. And QNET, being the official direct selling partner of Manchester City Women, couldn’t be prouder.
It’s a journey that has many lessons for direct selling: coping with the loss of personnel (how many times have you had to cope with a member of your team dropping out or becoming unproductive?), ensuring your superstars are always performing at optimum levels, and perhaps most importantly, making sure a team performs as a collective for shared glory instead of just being a bunch of individuals.
Here are a few of City’s new — and one not so new — faces that’ve been turning on the style this season, and the qualities that a direct seller can learn from them.
Khadija Shaw
Position: Striker
Shaw‘s impressed from Day 1 at the Academy Stadium. But it was in the side’s Women’s FA Cup demolition of Leicester City that she truly revealed her class.
Netting a hattrick to book the Sky Blues a spot in the semifinals, Jamaica’s all-time top scorer’s sublime display proved just why she’s regarded as one of the best strikers in the world.
Even so, the woman who wears “Bunny” on the back of her shirt remains humble. She says: “It’s a team effort. I’m scoring the goals, but if it wasn’t for my team, it wouldn’t be possible.”
Ruby Mace
Position: Midfielder
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She’s only 18, but you’d never have known that from Mace’s commanding performance in City’s Continental Cup win over Everton.
Displaying calm and composure beyond her years, the former Arsenal player was a rock in the heart of the City’s defence. And the English teen sensation hopes her City career will only get brighter from here on out.
“I haven’t been rushing things during my time at City. I’m happy that (coach Gareth Taylor) sees my ability, and I’m grateful that he trusts me to play with the other girls…I can’t wait to see what’s next, and hopefully, I can get some more game time,” she says.
Vicky Losada
Position: Midfielder
Stylish, formidable and with few equals, Losada has won everything there is to win in the game.
Yet the Spaniard is determined to reach new heights at City. Indeed, the midfielder’s performances, right from City’s Women’s Super League curtain-raiser, where she opened the scoring, have been nothing short of extraordinary.
The only questions left are: How much higher will Losada soar? And can she steer her new team to glory the way she did when she captained Barcelona?
Filippa Angeldahl
Position: Midfielder
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Angeldahl‘s been a mainstay of Coach Taylor’s side. And in every match, the Swedish midfielder’s displayed steely focus.
“Gareth Taylor has told me to be the player I am. In the beginning, it’s about learning the system, listening and taking in what is said,” the Tokyo silver medalist says.
And she’s determined to keep getting better.
“It’s early in my City career, but I know I will be a better football player here.” We’ve no doubt she will be.
Karima Benameur Taieb
Position: Goalkeeper
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She isn’t technically a new signing. In fact, Benameur Taieb’s been on City’s books since September 2019.
However, the shot-stopper’s appearances have been fleeting, that is until this year when main keepers Ellie Roebuck and Karen Bardsley both found themselves sidelined.
Now, having featured in all of City’s matches so far, the French national is relishing the chance of cementing her place among the First XI.
“As a goalkeeper, you have to manage patience. You have to work hard every day and know that one day, your chance will come… Now, it has happened — I have my chance to play and enjoy it,” she says.
