Björn hails Everton’s footballing identity under manager Sørensen | OneFootball

Everton defender Nathalie Björn has hailed the identity that manager Brian Sørensen has brought to the club since his arrival on Merseyside last summer.

Sørensen implemented his footballing philosophy at Everton throughout last season, guiding the club to a top half of the table finish in the process.

When speaking to the WSL Press Pack, Björn spoke positively about Sørensen’s footballing principles and she believes that the team have a solid base to build upon going into the new season.

“I’ve been at Everton for two years now, but when Brian came in last season, I really felt that we got our identity more than we had before — trying to be good with the ball and have possession,” Björn said.

“That is part of our identity now. We just need to be a bit sharper in the final third but other than that, I think we have a really good base.”

Looking ahead to the new campaign, Björn is hoping that Everton can improve on that sixth-place finish from last season.

She said “It’s about building on that foundation and closing that gap. Last season, we were a little bit up and down in our performances and we had some games where we lost by too many goals. We need to keep doing what we’ve been doing but just add this little bit extra.”

On a personal level, Björn admits that she struggled to adapt when initially moving to the English game but she knew that it was an opportunity that she couldn’t pass up.

“It was a completely different culture,” she said. “I knew that the league was really competitive with good players, but I found it really difficult because it was so different to Sweden. The thing that I appreciated was that I knew English so I could speak the language and I had native Swedes with me who made it feel like home. That helped me so much in the beginning.

“If you have the opportunity to play in the WSL, you should take that opportunity because it’s something you will never forget. You will enjoy every day here, you will grow as a person and as a football player.”

Everton kick-off the new Barclays Women’s Super League season against Brighton and Hove Albion at Walton Hall Park on Sunday.