Nancy Chaillian: My most beautiful goals in “Al-Nasr”… and the Saudi women are coming towards the world
Lebanese Nancy Chaillian, a player for the Saudi women’s progress team “from the Qassim region” and participating in the first-class competitions, revealed her aspiration to win the title and advance to the professional league next season.
In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, Chaillian indicated that she is proud to be part of the development witnessed by women’s football in Saudi Arabia, praising the work of those concerned in bringing the game to the world. She talked about her experience in the Champions League alongside big clubs, and the opportunity to play in the recent World Cup qualifiers.
The Lebanese star said that she aspires to make her mark with the progress team (Middle East)
> How do you describe the contracting step with the Saudi Progressive Club, and what do you look forward to with it?
– I am happy with this step, the women’s progress team was established recently and I joined it with the aim of helping it achieve victory and promotion to the Premier League. The management of the team has a specific strategy, and we will work together to provide a good performance befitting the team and Saudi football, in order to win the title and rise, starting from our first participation. My contract extends for seven months until the end of the season, and I will start training at the beginning of September in Jeddah.
> Why did you choose to advance and not others, especially since it was recently established?
– The truth is, I chose to advance regardless of the degree in which it is active, but I see that the women’s league in Saudi Arabia is coming strongly to compete with the Asian leagues, especially since it is receiving great attention and distinguished media support that we do not see in most countries. Often, I like to be in leagues that have great support from their union, this encourages everyone to do their best to reach the desired goal. At the same time, it is nice for you to participate in building a team that has ambition and to be an essential element in it, and I will do my best to put all my experiences and transfer them to others in order to develop work and make progress. There is no doubt that when I received the offer from Al Taqaddum, I did not hesitate to accept it, especially since the coach of the team, Khader Al Zahrani, played under his leadership with the youth team.
> Saudi women’s football has witnessed great development, tell us about your experience and observations in this regard…
I am proud to be part of the development of women’s football in Saudi Arabia. The game enjoys wise leadership, managed by Lamia Bint Bahian, and has achieved success that dazzled the world at all technical, administrative and organizational levels. The matches are held according to the same international standards, which is an important matter and constitutes a strong motivation for Saudi Arabia to host the 2026 Asian Cup. What struck me most is that work is underway in full swing to provide the best, keep abreast of developments, and improve the skills of female players, in addition to the increase in their number and the number of participating clubs. This great advancement of the game in a short period of time has not been seen before, and in my opinion it will have a positive impact on the development of the level of the national team and its participation in Asian competitions and perhaps the World Cup qualifiers, and this is not far away.
>You had a professional experience with the Saudi Al-Shabab Club in the Premier League last season, how did you see the competition in it?
– The competition was very strong. It can be said that the struggle in the men’s league moved to the women’s stadiums, and we always saw the rivalry between the clubs. In my opinion, the high professionalism that the first season witnessed at various levels heralds a great and promising future for women’s football in Saudi Arabia and will change the concept of the game in the entire region. For example, the youth team in the first stage signed only two foreign players, while the other teams had seven foreign women; Therefore, we were feeling difficult in some matches due to the great technical difference, unlike the second stage, which was better for us with the signing of two other players, and we were then able to occupy third place in the league.
> What is the most beautiful goal you scored in the Saudi Premier League and against any team?
– I still remember our confrontation against the Saudi Al-Nasr team, the league champion, when I hit the ball directly from the middle and put it into the net, as well as my other goal against Al-Yamamah.
> The Saudi League attracts a lot of female professionals, how do you see the impact of this on the development of the game?
Attracting professional female players from different countries of the world enhanced the spirit of competition and added an element of excitement and suspense to the matches, especially since the system adopted by the Saudi Football Association entitles each club to contract with seven foreign women, four of whom are on the field. It helps in developing the league by transferring expertise and raising the spirit of Competition, reducing technical differences between clubs, and developing the technical skills of Saudi female players. There is no doubt that the professional mentality, lifestyle and knowledge transfer are all factors that contribute to the development of building a spherical mentality and change the lifestyle of the players.
> Less than two years later, specifically in 2021, the Saudi women’s team entered the FIFA rankings for the first time in its history. How do you see this achievement?
– This is really amazing. What has been accomplished in a short period of time is fantastic and really like a dream. I think that any other country with a conservative society would not have achieved what Saudi Arabia has achieved at this time. This historic achievement in a short period of time reflects a long-term vision for women’s football, determination and will to achieve more achievements. I am sure that this is only the beginning; Evolution and change at the level of women is one of the most beautiful stories in the world of football, and it is a source of inspiration for many girls and even national teams and technical staff.
> What is lacking in women’s soccer competitions in the Arab region?
– We lack perseverance, and for football to be a profession, not a hobby, to secure the future of the player through football, just like men, to have upbringing, football knowledge and follow-up from a young age, to adopt a specific lifestyle that includes a diet and sports, physical fitness in addition to the football mentality. Some Arab countries have taken a different path and today are working to develop women’s football at a level no less than men’s leagues, and this is what we need to have football and development thinking like what Saudi Arabia is witnessing now.
Chaillian expected a distinguished presence of Saudi women’s football at the international level in the future (Asharq Al-Awsat)
> You went through a professional experience with the Armenian club Al Ashkert and played with it in the European Champions League, which is an exceptional experience. How was that experience?
– I signed a contract with the Armenian league champion Al Ashkirt to compete in the European Champions League, in which we did not improve in skipping the group stage due to several factors, most notably the great technical factor; Because we faced teams at a very advanced level, as we fell into the ninth group, which included difficult confrontations alongside Besiktas, the Netherlands, Twente and Gornik Lisna, the Netherlands. It was an exceptional opportunity not to be missed. Therefore, I accepted, although the financial offer was not good, but such opportunities do not recur. My participation contributed to increasing my expertise and technical skills through contact with international football schools and learning about the nature of the lives of female players in Europe, as I was attracted by the homogeneous and high spirit of the teams, their great affiliation with their clubs and the way they program their lives around football only. My contract extended for one month, and the financial offer was not good, but the opportunity does not arise every time, and it is an exceptional experience. So I accepted their offer.
> Why didn’t you play with the Armenia national team?
– I am Lebanese-Armenian, I played with the Lebanese national team for many years, and the law does not allow me to play with another national team, knowing that I had the opportunity to play with the Armenian national team in the last World Cup qualifiers, but I was not able. Of course, this is the opportunity of a lifetime, but I hope that the Lebanese national team will one day play in the World Cup qualifiers, and that I will be part of this achievement, and the matter is not impossible, especially in light of the development that Lebanese football is witnessing on this level.
> You have a good experience in the world of football, what are the most prominent moments that you remember?
– I remember many moments in my career, but the most difficult of them was last year when I won the Women’s League title with the Lebanese Sports Stars team, and although our ranks were insufficient throughout the tournament due to several circumstances of the players, we were able to win the title. And before that, with the Lebanese Zouk Mosbeh team, when it scored the winning goal, and we achieved the championship title in a decisive final match. Perhaps the most prominent thing I always remember is my beginning in the game; As I started practicing football almost 23 years ago, and nothing was available to us unlike what is currently available. We did not have stadiums for championships or for training. Clubs were very few and with personal effort, and when I reached the age of 26 I thought I had lost the opportunity to become a professional, but the opportunity for the Champions League Europe gave me life and hope again.
Chaillian during her interview with Asharq Al-Awsat
> In your opinion, has the experience of professionalism in women’s football been delayed?
– I always say that female players in our time are fortunate because of the integration of several factors with each other. Today, the interest in women’s football is greater even at the level of the International Federation. Arab countries have started to have leagues in different age groups for women’s football, and also the presence of social media is a key factor to open the game and give an opportunity Overseas professionalism. Sometimes I say, I wish I was younger in light of the opportunities that come to me today for professionalism, but every age has its own experience.
2023-08-26 07:23:04
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