Reading boss Kelly Chambers believes that summer signing Charlie Wellings will be a big player for her side once she gets back up to speed with the English game.
The 24-year-old has previously turned out for Birmingham City and Bristol City in the top flight before spending last season with Glasgow giants Celtic.
Wellings’ time north of the border was a big success with the striker netting an impressive 40 goals in just 34 games in all competitions for Fran Alonso’s Celtic side.
When speaking to FAWSL Full-Time, Reading boss Chambers said that Wellings will be a big player for the club this season once she has had time to adjust.
“In training, she has slotted into the group very well,” Chambers said. “She is just trying to find her way into the intensity and the standard that we train at.
“The biggest thing is translating what she has done with Celtic into the WSL. For me, I am not looking for a major impact from her straight away because I know that the jump from Celtic to the WSL is pretty big but as a player who has scored 40 goals a season, you don’t then become a striker who can’t finish.
“She just needs to be given time to adapt to the league, to adapt to that next level and I think over time, we can see a really important player for us this season.”
Chambers has retained the services of virtually all of her squad over the summer whilst adding some depth. The Reading boss is hoping that her side can beat their eighth-place finish from last season.
She said “I’ve kept a good foundation of the team which is so important. In the last couple of transfer windows, I’ve had a massive turnover of eight players plus. To be able to keep that foundation and add to that, I think I’m truly in a better place than I was this time last season.
“It has been a process in getting the team to gel, understanding the way I want the team to play and in pre-season, they have been excellent at executing those things. We want to finish higher than we did last season, I don’t think that’s out of reach for us.”
Reading begin the new season against Liverpool at the Select Car Leasing Stadium on 11 September.
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