After finishing a disappointing ninth in the Women's Super League last season, Aston Villa have freshened things up by adding Scandinavian talent to their squad. Players from Scandinavia are no novelty in the WSL, it is a well-sailed passage across the North Sea for players from the region. But Villa signing four Scandinavian players this summer - three from Norway and one from Denmark - among eight senior arrivals, having previously had none, is notable.
The total number of senior players from Norway, Finland, Sweden and Denmark in the WSL is 42 across 14 clubs, and Villa now have the fourth largest contingent behind Tottenham (10), Manchester United (seven) and Liverpool (six). Manager Natalie Arroyo and the Villa recruitment team have turned to Scandinavia to help plug senior squad gaps left by the departures of Kirsty Hanson to Spurs and Ebony Salmon to West Ham, and the retirement of Lucy Staniforth, among others. And they hope the new arrivals can bump Villa back into the 'best of the rest' conversation.
The Villans have not matched the heights of fifth place in 2023 and last year's ninth was their lowest WSL finish in five years. Three of the new arrivals are Norway internationals - defender Mathilde Harviken and midfielders Kamilla Melgard and Justine Kielland. Also arriving is Denmark striker Amalie Vangsgaard.
She joins from Juventus, as does Harviken. Kieland hopes these pre-existing relationships can provide immediate results at Villa Park. "I knew Mathilde from the national team, we are good friends, so we spoke about joining the team," she told BBC Sport.
"It's nice having a lot of fellow Norwegians, Scandinavians - we speak the same language. "But all three of us are quite independent, we are looking for what is the best fit for our career, so it is a good sign we have all decided this is an attractive club and a good place to be. "For many Scandinavian players, England is a good place to be as it is a competitive league, every week you are able to perform at a higher level.
"I am comfortable in midfield with Mathilde behind me, but we have to integrate that into the whole team, to have all the players working together. "In Norway we have grown up with the fact England is a great footballing nation, and we see there is a competitive league. If players want to develop, England is a good place to be." It is not the first time a WSL club have turned to Scandinavia to try to improve results.
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