Chelsea's Melvine Malard: 'Football is the last sport I tried' – video

Melvine Malard says it was her childhood dream to become a professional football player. She tried her hand at judo, boxing and handball until finding her passion: football. The France international played under Chelsea’s head coach, Sonia Bompastor, at Lyonnes (formerly Lyon) and was recruited to their academy by Bompastor. At 14 she caught Bompastor's attention at an under-15 match at France’s national football centre in Clairefontaine.

Bompastor persuaded Malard’s mother to allow the 14-year-old to move from Réunion, a small island east of Madagascar. Malard spent seven seasons at Lyonnes, winning four Champions Leagues, three league titles and two Coupes de France. She joined Manchester United on loan for one season before making the move permanent in 2024. In July, Chelsea closed in on a deal to sign the forward for a club-record sale for Manchester United, understood to be about £850,000.

Signing for Chelsea was a full circle moment for the forward, reuniting her with the manager who plucked her from her island life and gave her the chance to pursue her dream at the biggest club in Europe. ‘Island girl’ Malard aims to ‘become a legend’ in Réunion with Bompastor

Read the original report at The Guardian.