Anna Patten is enjoying new horizons in her loan spell at Aston Villa, including working under an experienced female coach in Carla Ward something that has not been the norm in her career.
“It’s been great, she’s made me feel very comfortable here and set out the plan of what it’s going to look like going forward,” Patten said in an exclusive interview with Sky Sports’ Charlotte Marsh after joining the club from Arsenal.
“The relationship she has with all the players is something that excites me and it’s always something that’s really good within a team.
“For me as well, I really do appreciate working under female coaches and I haven’t done that much in my career so I’m really going to take this opportunity, especially with someone like Carla.
“There are lots of female coaches here in the Women’s Super League, but I personally haven’t played under many. She’s played before, she understands what it’s like to play in a female team and things like that. Although I hope it isn’t too much of a unique situation, for me, it is. I just look forward to that player-manager relationship you can have.
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“I had some good chats with Carla. She was really helpful in telling me to come here and to help me develop as a player.
Anna is a key signing for us and will bring both quality and experience to the team. She is a young English player with huge potential and we believe this is a great chance for her to continue her development.
Aston Villa manager Carla Ward after signing Anna Patten