This year, her two dreams came true. She transferred to a prestigious competition and presented herself in the senior national team.
19-year-old soccer player Michaela Martišková has had very successful months behind her. She was recently honored at the Grassroots Gala as the best under-19 female soccer player.
She donated the voucher to the school
In her childhood, she was also involved in other sports, but her love for football soon prevailed. “I went to karate for a month, but I quickly got over it. It was boring for me, I needed to run. So I switched to soccer,” the talented soccer player told Sportnet.
She started in her native Urminci. “Back then, maybe it wasn’t as typical for a girl to play football as it is now. But the boys took me very well. We were a group, we knew each other from school. Those were pleasant years,” she explained.
Along with the under-19 soccer player of the year award, she also received a 500-euro voucher for shopping in one store chain. She dedicated it to the elementary school in Urmincie, to which she owes a lot.
“They raised me there, they allowed me to develop in football. They deserve it and maybe they will use it better than me,” she emphasized.
From Trnava to Slovan
She moved from Urminiec to nearby Topoľčany. Subsequently, she spent four years in Spartak Trnava and last season was in Bratislava Slovan.
For the men, the transfer from Trnava to Slovan is always risky, they are old rivals and the fans will make the players feel it.
“Maybe it wasn’t the most pleasant for me either, but I didn’t make a decision from one day to the next. After four years in Trnava, I wanted a change, but I wanted to finish my studies and get my high school diploma, so I didn’t want to go abroad right away,” she explained.
In Slovan, she scored 25 goals in 25 matches.
“It was like my second football family. I don’t regret the decision. I am grateful to both clubs for the fact that I could work in them,” she underlined.
“Should I dream big?”
When she was studying for her final exams, her agent, whom she also considers her soccer father, called her and asked her what her dream country was.
“Should I dream big?” she asked.
She mentioned Italy as one of the first countries, and the agent told her that Juventus was interested in her.
“I didn’t know if he was joking, but it was reality. A few weeks later, I went there for a medical examination and to sign the contract,” she described.
For the first weeks, she was not allowed to talk about the interest of the big Italian club, and it was not easy in the period before graduation. In the end, however, she passed both her high school diploma and a transfer to Juventus.
“I’ve dreamed of going abroad since I was a child, but I didn’t expect it to come this year,” she added.
“It made me very happy and I also feel a commitment to myself that once I’m there, I’d like to achieve something there. But we’ll see how it develops, because football is unpredictable,” she emphasized.
Real professionalism
Even before signing the contract, she knew that Juventus would send her on loan, but it was not yet certain to which club.
She spent three weeks of preparation in Juventus. She lived in a hotel with her teammates.
“I was stressed before the first training. It was a completely different pace, but after a few days I got used to it, because I had been preparing for it physically for a long time. I enjoyed it, in such conditions you can’t not enjoy it,” she said.
Juventus has an excellent infrastructure and academy, and there is also a place for women. “There are about 18 people in the implementation team, doctors, physiotherapists. It’s something completely different from Slovakia. That’s really professionalism,” said the Slovak soccer player.
She is currently on loan at Bologna, which operates in Serie B. “If I have to compare it, I feel that it was more tactical in Juventus. You can see the difference in the players’ settings. In Turin there is a diversity of countries and in Bologna we are four foreigners,” she added.
The trainings take place in Italian, sometimes the assistant coach translates something for her in a hurry, because the head coach does not speak English. “I already understand a little bit of Italian and at the same time I have to perceive with all my senses,” she said.
Her favorite Italian expression is “andiamo raga,” meaning “let’s go, baby.”
The salaries in women’s football cannot be compared to those in men’s football, but the players can make a living from it.
“I don’t need a part-time job for that. In addition, the club provides some things for the players, so I don’t have such costs,” explained Martišková.
National team debut
This year, she also appeared in the women’s national team. She started in the matches against Ukraine and Hungary.
“Representation is the goal of every player. I appreciate it very much,” she underlined.
Her next dream is to fight for the Juventus team. “I have a contract until June 2028, but the staff is really busy. It’s not easy, but I’m dreaming about it. Hopefully I’ll be able to do it one day,” she concluded.
Women’s football is becoming more and more popular. This is not only true in the best leagues, but this year, 3,800 spectators came to the Slovak women’s national team in the match against Gibraltar.
“I also want to ask people to go to matches. And especially not to compare women’s football with men’s football. It’s diametrically opposed, but at the same time it’s something nice,” concluded Michaela Martišková.
