Marie Höbinger: “We Have Been Training With A Real Intensity”
As The Liverpool FC Women continue their WSL preseason preparations in France, new signing Marie Höbinger spoke of her experiences so far.
The Liverpool FC Women are a month into their preseason preparations with another month to go before the WSL season kicks off. New signing Marie Höbinger spoke about how her experience with the club as been through the opening few weeks of her career as a Red.
“I really feel great in the team and the girls are amazing and everyone’s really nice,” said the Austrian midfielder.
“The first weeks of pre-season were really good. We have been training with a real intensity, doing a lot of shape work, which is quite new for me. It has been challenging but also good for me to get used to this way of working. I feel very good and it’s fun.”
Höbinger discussed how the intensity is fed by the high expectations that start with manager Matt Beard. Those expectations drive the progress from one training session the the next.
“I really like the way we train and the high expectations he has on us in every single training session. He has really high standards and it’s living up to the expectations every day, but most importantly it will help the team develop and I feel we have made good progress in pre-season so far towards where we want to be.”
The high expectations also come with a level of trust from Beard according to the midfielder. She spoke about how Beard balances the demands he has with the way he makes the player feel welcome and so they can express themselves on the field.
“He makes everyone feel welcomed and that also helped in the first few weeks for me to settle and feel comfortable. He wants us to express ourselves in training and that really helps me to be brave and try stuff. He trusts us on the pitch and I think that’s good for us to express ourselves and have fun in sessions.”
The hard work and intensity showed as Liverpool put on a strong and energetic performance against PSG in the semifinals of the AMOS Cup in France. For Höbinger, the change of scenery is about more than just the work the squad are putting in, but also a time for the team to come together with six new signings on the books.
“I think the trip is perfect for team bonding. I can tell I feel more confident now and to have more time with the girls will help a lot to get to know everyone better off the pitch as the week progresses. It’s nice to have some time away from normal surroundings as we prepare for the WSL.”
While the team bonding is important, the experiences on the pitch are of course the biggest part of the trip. Höbinger spoke prior to the match with PSG during which Liverpool showed no fear as they dominated long stretches of the match against a legitimate Champions League side. For Höbinger, the ability for herself and the team to test themselves against some of the top players in the world.
“I think it’s great to have international friendlies in pre-season. I think it’s going to be a good test, but also a really hard one. They [PSG] have a really good team with a lot of great players who have also been at the World Cup. It’s going be a great opponent for us to test out all the things that we’ve been working on.”
Liverpool will be back in action on Thursday when they take on Atletico Madrid in the AMOS Cup third place match.
Source: liverpooloffside.sbnation.com
Post a Comment