West Ham United women’s team defender Amber Tysiak is hopeful that she and her teammates can improve on last term’s eleventh-place finish in the Barclays WSL, as the fresh campaign gets into full swing.
The 24-year-old played 20 times across all competitions during 2023/24, her first full season in Claret and Blue after joining from Oud-Heverlee Leuven in January 2023.
An injury disrupted Tysiak’s first four months in east London, so last season felt like a major step for the defender, who had previously combined playing football semi-professionally with her career as a teacher.
The Belgium international has represented her country on 23 occasions at senior level and has a growing influence on both the national team and West Ham as she continues to mature as a player.
Tysiak was part of the Hammers squad that travelled to Australia for the women’s team’s first ever pre-season tour, as they took part in the inaugural Perth International Football Cup competition in the summer and played against Paris Saint-Germain and Leicester City at HBF Park.
The ten-day trip Down Under allowed the Irons to experience a different environment, and also gave them solid preparation ahead of the new season. Tysiak believes it will help them as they move through the opening few weeks.
She said: “Our pre-season was really good, and we had the great experience of going out to Australia. It was my first time out of Europe and the first time I had to travel such a long distance!
“When we were there, I think we all found it really beneficial. We were able to work hard on the training pitches, play two really competitive matches and then we also had opportunities to see a little bit of a new country as well.
“It allowed all of us to spend time together as a team in a new environment, and I believe it helped bring us all closer together.”
“We all want to do better than we did last season in the league,” she added. “We know that we have the quality this season to improve on where we finished last year, and I feel as though the togetherness we have within will help us to achieve that.
“For me, I want to try and help the team as much as I can. I want to play as many minutes as possible this season and continue to develop as a player. I’ve had a full season in the league now, and I learnt a lot last season.
“Under Rehanne [Skinner, women’s team manager], we all know that we’re building in the right direction, and it’s just about being consistent across the season. We’ve got a lot of new faces in the squad, and I think once we’ve had a little bit of time to gel, we will start to pick up more points.”
Amber Tysiak's football firsts...
First game you watched live as a supporter?
I can’t remember exactly what game it was and when, but it would have been to watch KRC Genk. I would have gone with my older brother to watch a game, probably when I was about eight or nine years old.
First football hero?
That was Francesco Totti. When I was younger, I had an Italy jersey with his name on the back, and my brother had one with Fabio Cannavaro on the back. At that time, I was more of an attacker before I moved back into defence. My mother is Italian too, hence why we liked Totti and Cannavaro so much!
First football boots?
It would have been Adidas. I tried having a pair of Nike Mercurials back in the day, but they didn’t fit my feet that well.
First mentor in football?
That was Guido Brepoels, who is the coach at Genk. I had a lot of injuries during my time there, and he was very patient and supported me a lot. He really helped me to keep going and ultimately he’s a big reason as to why I’m playing professional football today.
First professional game?
My first professional game would have been my debut for Belgium against the Netherlands. This was in February 2021 and it was a friendly game. We didn’t win the game, and it was really tough, but I remember thinking in the game that this was the level I wanted to play at regularly and that I had a lot of steps to take before I could do so!
First professional goal?
My first professional goals came against Armenia in a World Cup qualifier, in November 2021. I scored a hat-trick in the game!
