Glasgow City star set for Champions League match
Lee hails Scotland funding boost
Lee Alexander insists Glasgow City won’t be overawed by the occasion when they face Barcelona in the Women’s Champions League next week.
The Scottish champions travel to Catalonia to take on the Spanish giants on October 17, bidding for a place in the quarter-finals.
It’s a David and Goliath contest with part-time City battling it out with a professional side packed full of international stars.
But ahead of the first leg at the Miniestadi – which sits in the shadow of Barca’s famous Camp Nou – Alexander won’t let the glamour of facing one of football’s biggest names distract her.
The City goalkeeper said: “Their ground is right next to the Camp Nou so that will be something, but it’s European football and we’ve got players who have played in these big matches before.
“We played PSG in the Parc des Princes a couple of years ago and a few of us played at the Euros (in 2017), so for me it’s just another game.
“It’s great for the club to play a team like Barcelona, but our focus will be on what we can do on the pitch.
“We’re going there to do a job and try to stay in the tie for the second leg in Glasgow.
“Obviously, we are going to be the underdogs. It’s different from playing in our league where we are expected to win games, so that will be good.
“We can always go out with no level of expectation on us against these teams.”
Barcelona – who finished second to Atletico Madrid in the league last term – are the fourth highest ranked team left in the elite competition and Alexander knows the draw could have been worse.
She added: “When you get to this stage of the competition, knowing you are going to be unseeded, we were always going to face a big name in the game. Worldwide, Barcelona is a huge brand, but in women’s football Wolfsburg or Lyon are the teams you really want to avoid.
“Barcelona are still a really big club and it’s going to be an extremely difficult task to get through.
“They have top players throughout the team. There’s Lieke Martens – player of the tournament at the Euros – and Toni Duggan up front and they have a lot of Spanish internationals.
“We know they will play at a high tempo and we’ll need to be at our best to stay in the tie.”
Kick-off is 6pm BST, with the return leg at Petershill Park on November 1. Scotland’s women’s football team have scored a funding boost from the Scottish Government ahead of next summer’sWorld Cup. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced around £80,000 will be made available, allowing part-time players to go full-time from January 2019 until the tournament in June. Players like EK’s Lee Alexander, who works for ClydesdaleBankand isthe Glasgow City goalkeeper, will now be able to reach peak condition to take on the best in the world. “This support will make a huge difference to our recovery after matches,”said Alexander, Scotland’s No.1. “I’m out at 6.15am and I don’t get home until 9pm. I’m up first thing for the gym, then I need to get to work and after that it’s a mad rush to beat the traffic and get to training at night.The days fly in, but it takes a lot out of you. “Although we are part-time, we train full-time – we just don’t get paid for it. “But this [funding] means we can rest more and it will allow us to go to theWorld Cup on a level-playing field. “Now we’ll be as prepared as possible.”