During the summer, Czech international Andrea Stašková transferred to Atlético Madrid from Juventus, with whom she won seven trophies in three years. She took a while to get used to it in Spain, but now she feels great here. In addition to her feelings about Spain, she also talked about women’s football in general.
Andrea Stašková worked at Juventus since 2019, but transferred to Atlético Madrid this summer. In Spain, she feels that women’s football is treated differently here than in Italy.
The Czech representative claims that although Juventus is a very high-quality team in women’s football, the Spanish and English leagues are even higher in terms of quality. However, this does not mean that Italian teams do not have a chance to succeed in Europe. Her Juventus managed to knock out the strong Chelsea in the Champions League.
“The English league is top now, but with Juventus we played a good game against them and in the end we knocked them out. So I wouldn’t say that they are outright separated from the rest of Europe, but it is different, for example, in that they are supported by more viewers. However, women’s football is now taking off in other states as well.” said Stašková in an interview for iSport.
She will be lucky enough to taste the quality of English football even now. The Czech women’s national football team will head to England, where they will meet the local women’s national team.
The Czechs will challenge the English national team at the stadium in Brighton. Around thirty thousand fans are expected to arrive at the stadium, which will certainly create a fantastic backdrop. In the Czech Republic, such a visit would most likely not happen just like that, so they want to fully enjoy the match and try to surprise the favorite.
He is also getting used to larger visits from women’s football in his new place of work. Arriving in Spain was very difficult for Stašková. She headed into the unknown, had to get to know a new environment, new teammates and learn a new language. However, some time has passed and she now feels great in Madrid.
“I already speak Spanish better, I understand more, so it’s easier for me mentally as well. I calmed down. In addition, football in Spain is a level higher than in Italy, so I moved on. You can say that I have moved on in terms of football,” explains the Czech soccer player.
Are there any differences between Spanish and Italian football? Certainly. Stašková was especially surprised by how much attention is paid to the physical side in Spain. Frequent visits and fulfillment of nutritional plans are part of daily training.
“Every day we had to report what we ate. They watch our menu a lot here. And in the gym there are terrible bombs. Before I got into it, it was a little more difficult. I also got injured because of it because I wasn’t used to it and the thigh muscle took it.” describes his impressions of the Czech Republic.
Thanks to more intensive training, Stašková also managed to gain muscle mass. There was a significant improvement especially on the hands.
The only thing she hasn’t been lucky with and regrets is that she hasn’t met any footballers from Atlético. She met, for example, Cristiano Ronaldo or Álvaro Morata at Juventus, but no meeting has yet taken place at Atlético.
Stašková also describes the atmosphere in Madrid: “I was at the first match and recently at the derby with Real Madrid. The atmosphere is great there. I was surprised by that. Several thousand people sang the Atlético anthem. It gave me goosebumps.”
The Czech striker has played in three matches in Atlético’s jersey so far, scoring a goal in the last match. She played 31 matches for the Czech national team, in which she scored 12 goals.
Resources: iSport, Atletico Madrid
