Manchester City capped their year with a 10-game unbeaten run and look ahead to the return to Women’s Super League action in January when they travel to West Ham on Sunday 15th.
Yet off the pitch players haven’t always delivered on the present front according to Steph Houghton, Kerstin Casparij, Julie Blakstad, and Hayley Raso they told Man City media their best and worst Christmas gifts they’ve received and what was on their list for 2022.
Captain Houghton wanted to spend time with her nearest and dearest this year, she said: “To be with my family and friends basically and to actually switch off. Especially this year, it's been quite tough mentally and I've probably not always got the outcomes that I've wanted.
“I wouldn't change what I've done, but I think my body and my mind's a little bit ready to just spend some time being a little bit normal. I think that time will allow us to kick on for the next part of the season."
Seemingly after more functional gifts, she describes the worst kind she's received: “like a rubbish scarf or gloves. Something where I'm just thinking 'Yeah, I'm not going to use them anywhere!'"
Whereas summer signing right-back Casparij’s ‘worst gift’ was over 10 years ago: "It was very cute and I was only about ten, but I received a drawing from one of the younger kids in the street who I used to play with, and they put it in an envelope. I didn’t realise though, and when I ripped open the envelope, I ripped the whole drawing as well. I still to this day feel really bad, but even though it's so thoughtful, that was the worst gift because I just completely ruined it. As a child as well, I was thinking: ‘why do I get a drawing?’"
However, her best present is a thoughtful one from her girlfriend, which she didn't destroy. She said: "My girlfriend’s very smart and she made this little clock thing that you can put virtual quotes on. I have it on my nightstand and whenever she wants to send me a message, she just puts it on that so it's the first thing I see. It's a handmade gift with a lot of thought."
Having moved from the Netherlands earlier in the year, Casparij also wishes to dedicate the Christmas break to quality time with her family, she said: “Hopefully we’ll have some snow as well and to go ice skating. That's what we do, we skate around the canals and stuff. If I'm able to do that, I'll be content.”
Blakstad enjoys more traditional gifts: "I actually like to get things like socks [laughs] because that’s something which is annoying to buy yourself. I don’t know, that’s too hard, but I’m defending the socks!" alongside visiting her family back home in Norway: “I haven't seen [them] since the summer, so that is definitely what I’m most looking forward to."
Winger Raso can't wait to escape the Manchester winter for Australia's summer: “Sunshine! To go back to Australia and get some sun."
Her best Christmas present came from her brother: “I got this big, pink inflatable flamingo. It was massive, I had it in the pool but it was too big, so I ended up putting it in the lake and floating down."
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