ABBY DAHLKEMPER hailed her budding defensive partnership with Steph Houghton following her debut for Manchester City.
And the US superstar is relishing the chance to battle Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal for the WSL crown.
Abby Dahlkemper won plaudits for debut performance for Manchester CityCredit: Sportimage
Dahlkemper hopes to establish a title-winning defensive partnership with City skipper Steph HoughtonCredit: Sportimage
Dahlkemper was speaking a day after making her debut for Man City in the club’s 4-0 trouncing of West Ham.
And the USA international, who made headlines after joining the club in January on a two-and-half-year deal, praised her team-mates for helping her settle in.
Dahlkemper said: “It’s been great. I’ve been here a week now and what I’ve seen of Manchester has been so cool.
“Steph was amazing to work with during the game (against West Ham).
“I think just being able to trust my teammates and having them trust me felt seamless, and that’s a credit to the girls on the team.
“They were so nice so I felt comfortable and I think that’s a good thing because we all need to work together to win things.”
Dahlkemper, who was part of the American squad that won the 2019 Women’s World Cup, is the first US star to agree to a deal lasting more than a year with a WSL side.
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Dahlkemper played in every single game for the USA at the 2019 World CupCredit: Sportimage
Before joining City, the defender made 64 appearances for North Carolina Courage, winning two NWSL championships.
And the centre-back is one of three US internationals in Gareth Taylor’s City squad following the signing of her close friends Sam Mewis and Rose Lavelle.
The ex-Courage star, who was voted the NWSL’s Defender of the Year in 2017, hopes to win silverware with her new team.
Top to bottom this team is so talented with top internationals
Abby Dahlkemper
Dahlkemper added: “I really want to relish this opportunity, to experience Europe and to be a part of this team for a while.
“To be able to experience this for two-and-a-half years is going to benefit me on and off the field.
“There’s definitely a winning mentality here. You need that to have success as a team.
“This team wants to do big things. We’ve set standards and expectations high and we don’t let ourselves dip under those standards, that threshold.
“Top to bottom this team is so talented with top internationals and every day you’re going to get challenged and every day you have to earn your right to play and perform.
“Hopefully I can help the team grow and I know the team will help me grow.”
City, who are currently third and five points behind league leaders Chelsea, are due to take on Arsenal next in the league.
Dahlkemper and Man City are due to play title rivals Arsenal in the WSL Credit: Getty Images – Getty
And the clash will see Dahlkemper will go head-to-head with record-breaking goalscorer Vivianne Miedema.
The last time the duo faced off was in the 2019 World Cup finals which the USA won 2-0.
Dahlkemper added: “Arsenal are a quality side. They’ve done well and we respect them but we also focus on our game and the way we’ve been playing lately and on our successes.
“We’re fine-tuning the things we need to fine-tune for that game. The girls are excited and we’re really focused heading into this week.”
Lionesses in training
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
