Camila Sáez insists she is loving being a West Ham player, following her first minutes in Claret and Blue during the women’s team’s narrow 1-0 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the Perth International Football Cup.
The Chile international defender joined the Hammers on a free transfer in July, upon the expiration of her deal at Spanish outfit Madrid CFF, and travelled to Western Australia with the rest of the squad last weekend for their ten-day tour Down Under.
Having started to build relationships with the side’s playing and coaching staff during the first few weeks of pre-season at Chadwell Heath, Sáez explained that the tour has helped take everything to a new level, ahead of the upcoming 2024/25 Barclays WSL campaign.
“I’m delighted to make my debut for the Club, and I’m delighted to be a West Ham player,” the 29-year-old smiled. “We didn’t quite get the result we wanted, but I think we did well and showed some of our strengths.
“It’s been great at West Ham so far. I don’t speak much English, but my teammates have helped a lot, and always explain things to me in ways that I can understand. I’m really happy, and just looking forward to continuing working.
“This is the first time I’ve been on tour abroad with a club - normally that would just be on international duty - and it’s a really good opportunity. I’m grateful and happy, and looking to build on the good work we’ve put in now.”
After lining up from the start against PSG at HBF Park, alongside fellow summer signing Shelina Zadorsky - who signed a permanent deal at the Club following a loan last term - and in front of new goalkeeper Kinga Szemik, Sáez is pleased with some of the new partnerships she is forming for the Irons.
Romée Leuchter’s first-half strike ultimately won the game for the French heavyweights, meaning West Ham will now take on Leicester City in the Perth International Football Cup third-place play-off at 2.05pm AWST on Sunday, when they will look to round off their trip with a positive result.
Sáez added: “Always we are trying to do what the coach wants, and I think we saw that in the game. It’s the first pre-season match we’ve played in front of fans, so we’ll keep working with the same enthusiasm.
“It was great to meet lots of the supporters after the full-time whistle, as it has been throughout the tour, and we’ll look forward to going again on Sunday now, when hopefully we can get the win.”
