Risa Shimizu has certainly settled into life well in the Barclays Women’s Super League with West Ham United Women.
The Japanese defender had never left her homeland until she made the move to east London to join the Irons in August, and almost seven months on, she seems to have adapted to life in the Barclays Women’s Super League with relative ease.
It can sometimes take those moving abroad time to adapt, particularly to the technical and quick nature of England’s top division, but Shimizu, who has been key for manager Paul Konchesky so far this season, seems to be enjoying life in the Capital.
Shimizu has played in 19 of West Ham United’s 20 matches so far this season, only being rested for the Vitality Women’s FA Cup fourth round tie against third tier Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Speaking to Kyodo News after the Irons’ defeat to Aston Villa in the fifth round of the competition, Shimizu admitted that she is progressing as a player since making the move to England, and that playing against top quality opposition week in-week out is a big factor.
“I think my defending in 1v1 situations has really improved since I came to England,” she explained. “I felt that when I was recently with Japan in the last international break, where we played against some really strong teams in the SheBelieves Cup in the USA.
“I’ve been working on trying to get close to my opponents and prevent them from crossing the ball – I’m definitely getting better at that. One of the reasons that I wanted to come to England was to become a better defender, and I feel like I’m gaining valuable experience with every game that I play.
“The England National Team has become one of the best teams in the world in the last couple of years, and I’m really happy to be here in England where a lot of top international players are playing.”
The penalty shootout defeat to Aston Villa was Shimizu’s first game back for her club side since the international break and the aforementioned matches in the SheBelieves Cup.
Shimizu appeared in all three of Nadeshiko’s matches in the competition, which saw them lose narrowly to Brazil and the USA, before hammering Canada 3-0 to finish second in the group.
With this summer’s 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup coming into view, Shimizu believes that it’s important that she continues to develop her game.
“The schedule has been really packed at the moment, particularly after the international break where we’ve not had a lot of lead-in time to this game. I’ve been fortunate that I haven’t had any injuries this season and I feel fine.
“We have another important match coming up next week against Reading, so it’s important that I recover well.
“On the other hand, it’s great to be playing a lot of games because I’m able to continue working on my game and helping the team. I need to keep working on my defence, but also my offensive play. If I can get more crosses in and be more of an attacking threat, then that would be ideal heading into the World Cup.”
After a decade playing for Tokyo Verdy Beleza, Shimizu decided to take herself out of her comfort zone and try a different league and culture.
Part of that includes all of the complexities of the English language, and the defender believes that she is starting to understand more and more as time goes on.
“I’m really starting to understand a lot of what goes on when we’re playing,” she revealed. "Outside of football, it’s difficult to speak the language, but everyone is really helpful at West Ham - everyone is helping me to adapt."
"By using simple words and whiteboards, we’ve been able to communicate and understand each other. This is a really good opportunity for me to learn a new language and culture, and I’m trying my best to enjoy it.”
