AC Milan and Scotland star Christy Grimshaw has hailed 2021 as her “best football year to date” after breaking into the national team.
Grimshaw, who was born in Kirkcaldy but raised in Stonehaven, received her first national squad call-up back in May 2021 while Scotland were still under the stewardship of interim manager Stuart McLaren.
She has featured in every game since Pedro Martinez Losa was named Scotland boss in July, and has started in all but one of her six appearances under the Spaniard.
Grimshaw is used to playing as a number 8 in centre midfield at AC Milan, but under Martinez Losa, she has proven her versatility in a variety of positions.
It wouldn’t be unfamiliar to see her playing as defensive midfielder or even as part of the front three while in a Scotland shirt.
Grimshaw’s adaptable skillset has helped her break into and maintain her spot in the Scotland squad throughout Martinez Losa’s tenure so far.
“You always want to be looking ahead and seeing what you can do now, but 2021 has been the best football year for me to date,” Grimshaw said.
“From just getting into the Scotland squad, you don’t really expect to be involved as much, so it was great to be involved as much as I was.
“As long as I’m on the pitch and hopefully able to contribute then it’s an honour for me.
“Pedro is such an experienced coach so it means a lot that he has high expectations for me.”
Scoring at Hampden
Grimshaw experienced what dreams are made of in September when she opened her Scotland goalscoring account against the Faroe Islands, in the women’s team’s first ever qualifying match at Hampden.
Even now, she still struggles to put into words how she felt as the ball hit the net.
Grimshaw said: “It was honestly the best feeling in the world. I can’t even describe it.
“To score your first goal for your country and in a World Cup qualifier as well, I’m smiling just now even thinking about it.”
She scored her second goal the following month as Scotland beat Hungary 2-1, with the other goalscorer that night being Scotland skipper and fellow north compatriot Rachel Corsie.
“I saw a tweet after the game that said about us north girls doing Scotland proud, so that made me feel really good,” Grimshaw added.
Pinatar Cup defence
When Grimshaw next joins up with Martinez Losa’s squad it will be for the Pinatar Cup in Spain – a tournament that Scotland head into as reigning champions.
Between February 16 and 25, Scotland will play three games with the first being against Wales.
And while the national team will hope to defend the cup, Grimshaw believes the tournament will be an opportunity for Scotland to play without as much pressure.
She said: “It’s just a totally different approach because they’re not qualifiers. The pressure is off us maybe a little bit.
“Pedro won’t be like, this not going to be an intense camp, because obviously we want to get three wins, because it’s extremely important moving forward.
“We’ve got the two biggest qualifiers against Ukraine and Spain in April, so it’s really important to get some wins before that.
“The last five games (World Cup qualifiers) have been must-win results, so the Pinatar might let us play a little more freely and it’ll be nice to just go out and enjoy it.”
The Pinatar Cup will give Scotland some much-needed game time ahead of April’s make-or-break World Cup qualifiers.
Grimshaw already knows how big an achievement it would be if Scotland secure a place at the major tournament.
She said: “It would be a really amazing achievement if we were to qualify for the World Cup and to get the chance to play in a major tournament, that would be unreal.
“As a team we know that it’s going to be difficult, but when we come together anything is possible and we’ll put our all into it.”
AC Milan’s hunt for silverware continues
Since joining AC Milan in 2020, Grimshaw has played in two domestic cup finals, but has never been able to get her hands on either trophy.
This season she has already experienced cup final heartbreak as AC Milan were pipped to the Supercoppa by Juventus, a game in which Grimshaw scored.
However, the Rossoneri are still in with a chance of silverware as they look to reach the Coppa Italia final, as they did last year, and go one better this time and bring the trophy back home to Milan.
Their bid for the Coppa Italia is in a strong position as AC Milan beat Sampdoria 4-1 in the first leg of the quarter-final yesterday, with Grimshaw netting her side’s fourth goal.
The opening goal from the Super Cup in Italy yesterday from @christygrimshaw
Unfortunately after a red card early in the 2nd half, Juventus got back into the game and eventually won 2-1 late on.
But a 🏴 Scoring in an 🇮🇹 Cup Final is unbelievable.pic.twitter.com/lay72iyclu
— ScotsAbroadPod (@ScotsAbroadPod) January 9, 2022
Grimshaw said: “It was disappointing for us again, because we were so close and that’s two finals in two years that I’ve taken part in – but at least we’re getting to finals.
“The next step is just that extra little push and hopefully we can be in another final come the end of the season in the Coppa Italia.”
Alongside silverware, Champions League qualification is another must for Grimshaw and her AC Milan teammates.
She added: “The Champions League spot is a must. We’re so close, but the league is really tight this year.
“We’ve had a strong start to the second half of the season, so it’s a case of keeping the momentum up.
“We need to control what we can control and win our games then we will get that spot and reach the Coppa Italia final.”
