My 13 year odyssey

From failing high school to a published author. This is a small part of my story.

9:00 AM, someday in August 2007, GCSE results day. I vaguely remember what day it was but I eagerly awaited my results that morning having finally toiled for two years for a set of exams that in hindsight were meaningless. Logging in to check my grades, I faced the horror of having failed four of my seven subjects including Maths and English.

That was probably my second-lowest point after ending up with an E, E, and U in my first year of A-Levels and failing English GSCSE for a second time. At the time I thought there was no way forward, that no matter how hard I tried, I would always fail. It was a classic case of 100% effort but no end product but 16-year-old me knew nothing about what the future held.

Fast forward to 14th June 2021, at 29, I’ve graduated with a First Class Honours Bachelors degree in Business & Marketing, working a job in operations for seven years, found my career aspirations in football having written analysis for several known outlets, written a book, worked with a professional football club and appeared on a UEFA Champions League show. Not too bad considering I failed two subjects that are now key parts to what I do on a daily basis.

I wanted to give you a small backdrop to what is probably one of my biggest achievements to date with the release of Queens of Europe today.

Faith is my biggest asset and there are times it’s been forgotten. I’ve let outside factors determine my mindset but at the end of the day, that faith has repaid me in more ways than I could have ever imagined. I thank God every day for the blessings I’ve been given and the people I’ve met along the way. Every time I think I’ve lucked out, a new proposition enters the fray and it only drives me forward.

To everyone that has supported me and my work from day one, thank you. No, I don’t have 10,000 Twitter followers but the handful of you that do are so vocal. I appreciate all of you for that support and encouragement. It’s this engagement that drives me to want to do more, do better, and release the best analysis in the women’s game and maybe even catch the attention of some of the top clubs or media companies.

While I am far from where I want to be, I’m above and beyond the place I was 13 years ago. There are more projects on the way and I’m excited to share the next leg of it with all of you. Who knows where life will take me next, but I’ll be ready for it.

A dream to move into football professionally – as an analyst or tactics writer – is still alive and I understand it’s a slow process but just as I sit on the door of my 30s, I still have time to make it. If I don’t believe it, who will? To end, I leave you with a small extract from a chapter in Queens of Europe to give you a taste of what to expect for those that are yet to be convinced.

Links to the book can be found here:

https://www.bookdepository.com/Olympique-Lyonnais-Feminin-Abdullah-Abdullah/9781785318450?ref=grid-view&qid=1623668462756&sr=1-1

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Olympique-Lyonnais-Feminin-Queens-Europe/dp/1785318454

Thank you.

Photo by JEFF PACHOUD/AFP via Getty Images

Lucy Bronze - A Queen of Europe

"Growing up, it wasn't the dream [to be professional] - the dream was to always play football whether I got paid to do it or not." - Bronze speaking to Give Me Sport

Bronze has had her fair share of setbacks, having gone through four knee surgeries to the point where she visited a sports psychologist because she “couldn’t run”. She revealed some startling news in an interview with BBC Sport. The first injury came during her first training session with the England under-19s where she made contact with the ground which snapped her knee in half. After visiting a surgeon she was told: "You need to have surgery now otherwise you might lose your leg. It's infected." it is not something you want to hear after an injury like that, although the most brutal part of this story is when her under-19s manager called and stoically told her she wasn’t going to get picked.

“You're not going to be fit enough to play this summer. We've got a World Cup and a Euros. We're not picking you to play. Bye." He just put the phone down. That's when I was left to my own devices. I didn't have a physio so I used to go to the park with my dog and just run laps. That was me for three months, training as hard as I could to get fit.”

Bronze’s career hasn’t been smooth sailing, but now Bronze has become one the best players in women’s football, and arguably the best in her position. The England right-back has worked her way up to the top of the ladder; securing a move to Olympique Lyon was the pinnacle of her career given they are arguably the best team in women’s football history.