Everton’s Hayley Ladd: ‘The new owners were really impressive. It’s nice to hear that commitment’ | OneFootball

After five and a half years with Manchester United, moving clubs was never going to be pain-free for Hayley Ladd. But playing fewer than 10 minutes of Women’s Super League football for United this season, and knowing she needed a transfer to play more regularly before July’s European Championship, means the 31-year-old is now all smiles after her debut for Everton.

Her fresh start on Merseyside coincides with a new era for the club after The Friedkin Group’s takeover and she says it was an easy decision. “The owners came in the other day and presented [to Everton’s women’s team],” Ladd says. “That was really impressive. It’s nice to hear that commitment from the owners and also build a relationship with them personally.

“First and foremost the style of play at Everton suited me. I liked the flexible nature of it and the fact they are a team that wants to try to have the ball as much as possible. You can tell when you face Everton they are technical. Speaking to Brian [Sørensen, the manager], that came across. They probably see me more as a midfielder so that was another box ticked.”

Ladd, who has previously been deployed at centre-back as well as in midfield, moved for an undisclosed fee and is one of five players to have arrived at Everton in this window. She played 110 times for Manchester United and helped them win the Women’s FA Cup last season.

“At United it became obvious my chances were becoming limited in terms of getting any decent playing time,” she says. “That’s fine, it’s the way it was, and it spurred me on to look at other options. Once I heard Everton were interested it was an easy decision.

“I got to speak to Brian and hear about his plans. He spoke really well about what he wanted for the team and how my profile fitted it. It was music to my ears. In the background, Wales reaching the Euros spurred up that necessity to get more minutes and get more fitness in the tank.

“It’s always difficult leaving a club after so long. The United journey was maybe aligned with mine and you feel emotionally tangled with it. I was proud to represent the club over those years. I advocated for things in the best way I could and I was the best teammate I could be. But you have to rip off the bandage sometimes.

“Everton has been a breath of fresh air. I’ve learned loads in the first few weeks of training. Straight away I knew the environment was just what I needed.”

Ladd says her time out of the United first XI was tough but that she has unending appreciation for the support she received from their supporters. “They were my first experience of real women’s football fans. [After signing from Birmingham in 2017] I just thought: ‘This is amazing’, the energy and commitment every day. They were around the training ground, they are here for women’s players and the support for them is relentless. I’ve never known anything like it.

“It doesn’t waiver. It’s so resilient. It’s been such an amazing experience playing with that fanbase. I’d like to think there was a good connection. I certainly felt it my way. That’s a really meaningful thing as a player.”

In December, Ladd was part of the Wales side that qualified for their first major women’s international tournament with their playoff victory over the Republic of Ireland. They were drawn in Group D for this summer’s Euros in Switzerland along with England, France and the Netherlands.

“It’s a dream come true,” Ladd says. “For a long time, that was our sole ambition in the Wales squad: we just had to get this team to a major tournament.

“There were a few near-misses and a few heartbreaks along the way but I’m so, so proud to be able to say in my career that we have managed to do it. I’m just so proud that, when I retire, I feel I’ve left that shirt in a better place.”

Header image: [Photograph: Everton FC]