‘I’m really proud of myself’ – Sunderland’s Moan reacts to winning Golden Glove | OneFootball

Sunderland goalkeeper Claudia Moan said that she couldn’t be prouder after winning the Barclays Women’s Championship’s Golden Glove award.

The 25-year-old claimed the accolade after keeping a clean sheet in Sunderland’s goalless draw against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park this afternoon. Moan ended the season having kept 10 clean sheets in 22 league matches.

When speaking to WSL Full-Time after the match, Moan admitted that she was pleased to achieve what has been a season-long target.

“I’m really proud of myself and proud of the full squad, especially the back-line,” Moan said. “It’s what we wanted from the start of the season and we’ve came out and we’ve got it. I couldn’t be prouder.”

Against Crystal Palace, Moan was well-protected by a resolute Sunderland back-four. The keeper went on to say that the defensive understanding between teammates goes beyond the work done on the training pitch.

She said “It’s not just about working with each other, we are all friends and we’ve all got that bond. That brings us together as a unit even more, we all want the same thing.”

Sunderland end the season five points and two places behind eventual champions Crystal Palace. Moan was happy with today’s result and she feels confident about Sunderland’s continued growth next season.

“Our target today was to try and win the match and if not, it was about being defensively solid because they all said that they wanted to get the [Golden] Glove,” the keeper said.

“Our congratulations go to Crystal Palace, they’re a good team. We’ve fell short but it doesn’t mean that we can’t reach those heights next season.

“This is our foundation. We don’t drop from here, it can only continue. It can only get better from this hopefully, I don’t see why not.”

Sunderland’s third-place finish comes off the back of their first season operating on a hybrid basis. The club are expected to continue to push towards full-time operations going into next season.