Playing in the UEFA Women’s Champions League with City gave Leanne Ross some of the best memories from her playing career. Now, as Head Coach, she is preparing to lead her team in the competition as City face FK Austria Wien in the Second Qualifying Round on Wednesday evening.
Leanne guided her side to second place in the Scottish Women’s Premier League last season, and with it a place in European qualifying.
City face hosts Austria Wien in Wednesday’s qualifying semi-final, with a potential final against FC Minsk on Saturday afternoon the reward for the winner.
And sitting down on the eve of the squad travelling to Vienna, we caught up with our Head Coach and took a walk down memory lane.
During her illustrious career, Leanne represented City on the European stage in all but one of her seasons as a player.
On top of that, the former midfielder was also an integral part of the squad who reached the quarter-finals of the competition on two occasions in 2014/2015 and 2019/20.
But moments like progressing to the Champions League’s latter stages was not only about the prestige of the achievement on the pitch, as it also helped instil an ethos at the club that still exists today.
“As a player, you wanted to go and test yourself against the best opponents out there,” Leanne says. “Playing in the quarter-finals against PSG and then Wolfsburg, for a standalone club in the women’s game to achieve that and go that deep into the competition is a massive testament to what we’ve built here at the club.
“It was in those games where we really built the ability to stick together in those tough moments and to fight our way through competitions.
“You look back to the Brøndby game [in the Last 16 of the 2019/20 competition] and it was at the end of a tough season, still fighting on all fronts, and we go and win away which was a big thing for us.
“We come back for the second leg; it goes to extra-time and penalties. That was, I think, a Thursday night, and then on the Sunday we’re in the Scottish Cup final.
“But these are the games you want to play in. They are the experiences you want to have. At the time, there was never any time or thought to celebrate those achievements, and that is something I regret a wee bit through my career.
“I probably didn’t celebrate the highs as much as I should have because I was always thinking of what was coming next because there was always another big game around the corner.
“So, that’s something that I try and get through to the players in terms of anything we achieve, we should try and celebrate that in the moment.
“And that doesn’t mean nights out! It just means appreciating what you’ve achieved and really banking that feeling and using it develop and go forward into the next games.”
There are many moments from playing in the Champions League that Leanne still holds dear to this day.
From hosting Women’s Super League giants Arsenal and Chelsea, to coming up against now three-time European champions Barcelona, and to beating Zurich in dramatic fashion to qualify for the last eight, those shared experiences are something that can never be forgotten.
“There are loads of memories,” our Head Coach tells us. “I think back to the Zurich game when we did qualify for the quarter-final, I had been out injured for a significant period that season and those Zurich games were my first couple of matches back.
“To come into that pressure and to be able to contribute – I scored a penalty that night, set-up the winner as well, those memories are so, so special.
“Even still, looking back at all of the videos from that night, I get goosebumps from putting myself back into that moment.
“It’s just a feeling that you wish you could bottle it up because it is so special.”
To do it alongside teammates – people who were united and fighting for a common goal – who meant so much to her made it even more remarkable
“There are so many stories that we have from trips away or the experiences we have from coming through games together,” Leanne adds. “That’s probably where we built up the mentality that we were never beaten, and we had to dig in together to get the job done.
“We had to go away and adapt, but year on year, we got the experience of playing at the top level against some of the best players in Europe.
“Even getting to go away as a group and be around each other 24/7 was nice and it helped to develop stronger relationships and a better culture and environment within the club as well.
“Those experiences in Europe probably made us stronger as a team when we came back domestically because we were able to dig that bit deeper and fight for what we wanted to achieve.”
As a player, Leanne Ross lived for the Champions League nights. Now, as City Head Coach, she is determined to create even more magical European moments for the club.