HIBERNIAN LADIES head coach Chris Roberts says he won't have to lift his players for tonight's Women's Champions League match against Bayern Munich in Germany.
The Edinburgh side bounced back from a last-32, first-leg, 6-0 defeat at Easter Road to beat Celtic 3-0 in an SWPL1 game on Sunday and Roberts says he continues to be impressed with the mindset of his players.
“I won't need to get the girls up for the game,” he promised. “When I went into the dressing room after the first leg, I didn't know what to expect in terms of their attitude – but they were instantly talking about how they could have done better.
“Even although they were up against it, there was a belief that they could sort it in the second leg and make more of a mark. They all want to improve.”
The task Hibs face tonight was underlined by Bayern's 15-0 thrashing of lower-league Riegelsberg in the German Cup on Sunday. Central defender Stefanie van der Gragt, whose height caused Hibs so many problems at set pieces, came off the bench after 71 minutes and scored a hat-trick.
Another torrid 90 minutes lies in wait for the Edinburgh side, and Roberts acknowledged that the gulf between the two clubs always made the last-32 tie a damage limitation exercise.
“As soon as the draw was made, this experience was all about learning for us,” he pointed out. “Whereas Bayern are fully professional, with internationalists from several countries, our players and coaching staff were all back at work or university on Thursday morning. That is where our sport is at the moment and the players have to fight through these challenges.
“Many of them will have aspirations about playing at a higher level, and now they've seen at first hand what that looks like. Nobody likes to lose, but the girls are not downbeat.”
“Last Wednesday was a fantastic occasion, and that's good for women's football in Scotland. We want to show other nations that we are developing the game, as they will see at the Euros next summer.”
Chelsea are also in action in Germany tonight, having lost the first leg against Wolfsburg 3-0 at Stamford Bridge. Their manager, Emma Hayes, said after the first leg that English clubs, who are also fully professional, are still “years” behind the top German and French teams.
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