I’m not someone who has a plan and that really is the case. I’ve never had a plan! But I love challenging myself and that’s why I signed for Chelsea.
I’m 32 and have won titles in different countries but something was calling me to come back home and it all made sense when my former Lyon boss Sonia Bompastor became Chelsea’s new manager.
My family were more stressed than me about where I would end up this season. But I’ve not played in England since we won the Euros two years ago and I missed out on seeing the effect that has had on the Women’s Super League.
It also means my family can come and see me easily for the first time in a few years.
I’d wanted to spend time thinking about whether to stay with Barcelona. I loved it there but I felt it was a good time to leave and do something different.
For me, there’s no doubt that if I hadn’t had good options available to me elsewhere, I would have stayed.
It’s true Liga F needs to be developed more and I think the powers-that-be know that. A top-flight campaign in Spain is so taxing and I was aware of the need to play in a league where there are fewer matches but more meaningful ones.
At Barca, we won 29 of our league games, drawing the other, scoring 137 goals and conceding ten, winning the title by 15 points from runners-up Real Madrid.
There is no doubt Barcelona are one of the best teams in the world but I also felt I could go to other clubs and win more Champions League crowns, although I’m sure there are those who think it was a crazy decision to leave the European champions when I did.
To stay another year or two would have been very gruelling in terms of the workload – Spain really has a league like no other.
I was well aware England’s our defence of the European Championship is coming up next summer and also that I have to make the most of however long I have left in my playing career.
I had to look after my body and make a call based on the answer to the questions: ‘How long can I stay at the highest level and what is the best place for me to do that?’.
I felt England was the right choice and Chelsea became a genuine option for me when Sonia took over this summer.
I worked alongside her at Lyon from 2017 to 2020, when she was academy director, as we won three successive European titles together. Sonia and her staff are like friends to me as well as colleagues.
Something felt right suddenly about going back to England and joining Chelsea? I just thought: ‘Let’s go for it.’
Why not try to help Chelsea win that elusive first Champions League crown? That’s the goal for me now: I want to win the European title with an English club. Chelsea dominate WSL every year but have not quite got over the line when it comes to the Champions League.
What Sonia, her team and me add is that Champions League-winning experience. I know how hard it is to win.
I’m motivated to win more trophies and I am always attracted to clubs that are the same. I also like the pressure of trying to do that in a new place, adding another experience to my locker.
The timing was perfect in the end. Sonia loves to build a project and these are people I know well. I’ve never lived in London or down south before so there is the added incentive of getting to know a new-ish place again.
A new adventure rejuvenates me and I expect this one to be no different. Bring on Aston Villa on Friday and the start of an exciting new season in new surroundings.
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