Hearts' new signing Carly Girasoli is 'living the footballing dream'

With the perfect combination of experience and youth - Carly Girasoli is clearly one of the most exciting signings in the SWPL this summer.

The 21-year-old is one of many players that have come through Hearts’ door this window as they look to build upon their record-breaking campaign last season. A defender by trade, Girasoli has already built quite a reputation throughout Scotland before landing her move to the capital this summer. Now undertaking her next chapter in her footballing career at the Jam Tarts, the promising defender is loving life.“Since I’ve been young this is what I have dreamed of,” she told the Edinburgh Evening News. “For that to happen at such a young age was very good for me. Now I’m just taking it all in, taking it day by day and not taking it for granted.”

A graduate of Celtic’s academy, Girasoli would then go on to sign for Glasgow City where her potential was on full display. The defender helped the Glaswegians lift three league titles in her time at the club with the Scottish Youth Player of the Year award in 2018 also coming her way. After a spell a Rangers, the 21-year-old would make her way down south achieving back-to-back top-three finishes with London City Lionesses in the second tier. Now, with so much experience under her belt, Girasoli is hoping it will help out the team this season.

“We finished second in my first season and third last season,” she added. “Last season it was very close, there were only three points in it from us to the Champions, I just want to be in a competitive league to push onwards.

Carly Girasoli signed a two-year deal at the club. Credit: Hearts Women

“I just like to focus on my game. I spent a few good seasons up here and won the league a few times. I just want to bring my experience to the team and hopefully, we will do well this season.”

Since her last spell in Scotland, the competitiveness and quality of women’s football has clearly improved for all to see. Despite this, Glasgow City, Celtic and Rangers continue to hold a monopoly on the top three spots, a cycle Eva Olid is looking to destroy over the coming campaigns. Girasoli’s arrival in the capital only reinforces those ambitions as the side aims to take more points off the big three this season. So far, pre-season preparations have gone well and have shown no reason why Hearts cannot meet Olid’s ambitions.

“I had a Zoom call with Eva [Olid] and Sean [Burt],” she explained. “What they put across to me was really good and I wanted to be a part of it. I had seen a few of the derbies last season and they had a good few thousand fans. This season, we will hopefully build on that and get a few more in.

“It’s been good so far. The first few weeks I’ve really enjoyed it, I’ve fitted in well and the girls are really nice. We’ve got a good group here; we can achieve big things this season and we are looking forward to it starting.”