New West Ham United women’s team signing Verena Hanshaw is excited to hit the ground running in Claret and Blue, stating her conversations with Rehanne Skinner gave her a great feeling about the Club.
The 31-year-old joined the Hammers from Serie A side AS Roma on Tuesday, becoming the Club’s first signing of the January transfer window.
The versatile defender brings experience in abundance to Chadwell Heath, having represented her country at major tournaments and played in the UEFA Women’s Champions League. But now she gets the opportunity to show her quality in the Barclays Women’s Super League, something she is relishing.
While conversations with Skinner married up with her values on and off the pitch, there were also two other people, two of her closest friends, who spoke to Hanshaw and sealed her move to east London: Shekiera Martinez and former Hammer Hawa Cissoko.
They spoke to her about the Club’s loyal and passionate fanbase, whom Hanshaw cannot wait to step out in front of at Chigwell Construction Stadium.
Here is everything our new signing said in her first interview with West Ham TV!
Verena, welcome to West Ham United! How pleased are you to have signed for the Club?
Firstly, I want to say thank you and I'm really, really happy to be here. It's such a big opportunity for me and I'm so glad that I can be part of the Club.
What would you say it was about West Ham that made you want to join the Club?
I just think West Ham has a lot of good qualities, the Club and the team. I had such good talks with Rehanne [Skinner] and it just gave me a really good feeling. It all just feels right.
Can you talk a bit more about the talks that you had with Rehanne?
Obviously, we talked a lot. She explained a lot about how everything works here. We talked about the current situation and the future goals, but what gave me a really good feeling is the way she talked about what she wishes for me to bring into the team. It all fitted in really well with me.
Do you feel the manager's plans really suit the way that you play your game?
Yeah, absolutely. Everything she said, I was thinking ‘yeah, okay, that's great’. It was just perfect.
The fans will want to know a bit more about your game, how would you describe yourself as a player?
I'm definitely a big, big team player. It's always hard to talk about yourself, but I would describe myself as an experienced, calm player. And besides that, I like to work hard with the team, for the team.
I don't mind going the extra mile, and I think it's just super important to not forget why we all play football. The reason why we started is because we love the game so much and I think the joy and the fun should not be missed.
Another thing about you is you've played with one of our current players, Shekiera Martinez. Did she say anything to you before you joined?
We talked a lot, actually! We had a few phone calls and I'm super happy to be reunited with Shekiera. We played a few years together and we know how we both think, and her opinion was super important to me.
I also spoke with my bestie Hawa Cissoko, in Rome, and she just reconfirmed everything that Shekiera said. Everything just felt good.
Were you close with Hawa at Roma?
Yeah, I was really close with her and I'm really sad [to be leaving her]. I'm going to miss her!
You've played at the highest level on the international stage for your country, you've played in the Champions League, but how much are you looking forward to playing in the best league in the world, in the WSL?
It was always a big dream for me to play in the WSL, that's why I'm really, really excited and happy that I get this chance now to compete with some of the best players [in the world].
It's just amazing. I'm so ready to push myself daily, to work hard with the team and I hope we can all make each other proud.
The fans will be really excited to see you play, but how excited are you to play in front of them in Dagenham?
I'm super excited. I've heard a lot about the fans, especially how supportive and proud they are [of the team], and I hope I can repay them with my personality and qualities. And who doesn't like to be welcomed into a stadium with bubbles?
We started a busy run of games at the weekend and we've got a lot of games coming up, how much are you looking forward to getting straight into the action?
Yeah, I like the fact that I can't think too much, I can't make myself crazy. I'm here, I'm ready to go and I'm ready for everything that’s to come.
