✨ Check out this awesome post from BBC Sport 📖
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A large part of Blayney’s role is to travel to England and spend weeks at a time analyzing the performances of Japanese players.3
They also provide sponsorship to players – helping them overcome language barriers, settle in new cities and connect them with other Japanese players in the league.
In the week she spoke to BBC Sport, she attended matches in Brighton, Manchester United and Liverpool.
I watched Risa Shimizu score for Liverpool in their Women’s League Cup win over Sunderland and Miyazawa dominated United’s 3-0 win over Brann in Europe.
“Since January, I have been immersed in England frequently,” Blayney said. “I have been cooperating directly with the coaches, which is excellent for Japan.”
“They live on the other side of the world, far away from their homes and families. Sometimes just having a familiar face is important.”
“I was a former player living abroad so I understand the challenges. I always tell the players that I’m coming to their matches, but not Aoba Fujino because her face when she sees me always makes me smile.”
With a large number of Japanese stars in the WSL, clubs are offering ways to help them settle in, providing translation services and offering English speaking lessons.
Manchester City is preparing Asian-themed meals before match days and is allowing its Japanese players to return later during the winter break so they can celebrate the New Year with their families back home.
As a result, the WSL is an attractive destination for Japan’s top stars and their emerging generation, and Blainey hopes more will make the move in the future.
“It’s great for young players in Japan to see that there is a path to get to the big leagues,” Blayney said.
“If I use Hikaru Kitagawa as an example from Everton, all the girls in England rallied around her and helped support her during the transition period.
“It’s great to have this safety net. The current players in the J-League are setting standards which is really positive.”
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