Kyra Carusa has lauded the Irish in her for the competitive, never say die attitude she brings to a football pitch, whether that be at club or international level.
Carusa was speaking exclusively to The Halfway Line after her HB Køge side put in a fantastic performance to stifle top seeded Arsenal in the UEFA Women’s Champions League on Tuesday night.
Arsenal eventually won 1-0 thanks to a penalty in injury time, but Carusa and Køge left their mark. Arsenal head coach Renée Slegers praised them, singling out Carusa’s performance in particular in her post match press conference.
In the mix zone after the full time whistle blew, Kyra Carusa took the time to talk all things HB Køge, the Irish spirit and playing with Nadia Nadim.
(Photo by Linus Hallsenius – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)
Kyra Carusa says performance ‘testament’ to HB Køge project
It was clear that while HB Køge’s number seven was disappointed at conceding a late goal, she was also bursting with pride for her team. In Kyra Carusa’s familiar charisma infused cadence, she told The Halfway Line her initial post match thoughts,
“Yeah, I mean, I can’t help but think about the last time we were here” Carusa explained. “[It was] just a few years ago and our first campaign in Champions League and it was such a different feeling and such a different game.
“We played a 5-4-1. We maybe had one shot on goal and I think we lost 3-0, and you really didn’t feel like we were there, and we were like, oh, we could maybe get there. And tonight football was just football, and it didn’t go our way.
“But also to know where we were before, to now is a testament to this program, to the growth, to the belief, to the culture that’s been here, that has grown so much, and the players that have come in and left, and the same players that are still here.
“Like, it’s amazing how far it’s come, and to be in the first game of this stage and to put a performance like that in. Just imagine what we’re going to be doing in December.
“I mean, I look at it like, if we are this disciplined and this smart in the way we play it’s gonna go our way. And all it takes is the next game to say, okay, the ball goes our way, and then the next game it goes our way, and then the next game it goes our way.
“So, I mean, again, like it’s a tough pill to swallow to know that that’s the way we go tonight. But it also reminds me that it will, with the way we performed, it will swing our way.”
(Photo by Photo Prestige/Soccrates/Getty Images)
UWCL is about ‘special teams’ and ‘special moments’ says Carusa
In many ways, HB Køge’s plucky performance in the top tier against a huge name was reminiscent of recent Ireland performances under Carla Ward. Even when Kyra Carusa came off the pitch she influenced the match, raucously getting behind her team from the bench. The similarities with the culture at club and country are not lost on Carusa,
“I say when we were playing with Ireland and we were playing in the AVIVA, or we’re playing in Cork, you feel the crowd, like being home it’s this 12th man on the pitch” Carusa said. “Like you just feel like you have it with you.
“You know, it’s always they’re all home crowd advantage. And I said to the girls tonight, every girl on the bench, I said, I want Arsenal to look over and be like, ‘What the heck are they on?’ I want them to feel like uncomfortable by the fact they’re like, ‘Should we be supporting our team that well?’ Because that’s like, that energy, that mentality.
“It takes a special kind of feeling to create special moments and to create special teams, and again, when you’re in the Champions League, it’s all about special moments. It’s about special teams, about special wins, and I’m like, it’s not just a given, It’s not just a given.
“And again, like I do think that’s a testament to the program, the way these girls, we come in, and that’s everybody. Everyone’s bought into the same level. The girls on the field, the girls that come off of the bench, the girls that are on the bench, the girls back in Denmark as well. Like it’s that same mentality, regardless of who you are and what position you’re in.”
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Carusa delights in ‘Irish spirit’ she brings with her everywhere
The Irish striker had a thankless task up front for the underdogs, but she looked at home in the adversity. No HB Køge player played more key passes than Carusa and her hold up play helped provide the Danish side with much needed respite to waves of Arsenal pressure.
The Halfway Line asked Carusa how her experience with Ireland and her own infectious personality has influenced the culture at the Danish champions,
“I always say this about myself” Carusa expounded. “The mentality I have, it’s absolutely the Irish in me that really comes out in these competitive moments. This chip on your shoulder, this grit, this kind of like we’re pushing the team over the line, kind of a thing. I love it because I always have felt like in Denmark the first time I was here, and even now: the Danes, we have this mutual relationship that just functions well.
“The Danish are so willing and ready to accept that kind of mentality from me, as am I from them, like learning from each other. And I think when you’re playing internationally, you’re playing Champions League, it’s the teams that are able to kind of meet in the middle that are the most the the most powerful teams, and I do think it’s definitely that kind of culture.
“When I’m with Ireland as well, it’s like that energy, that contagiousness. Again, over the years, it’s just, no team wants to play us on any day, and I still say, I bring it to here too. I’m like that little piece of you that’s like, I don’t want any team to want to draw us ever.
“I want them to always be like, oh my God, we have to play them again. And yeah, I do find that’s a bit of a, it’s a bit of a similarity. So I’m glad to say that I’m bringing that Irish spirit everywhere I go, I’m leaving that mark, regardless of where I am!” Carusa concluded with a smile.
Carusa labels playing with Nadia Nadim a ‘privilege’
Synonymous with the UWCL are the world’s best players and HB Køge have added their fair share to this season’s pool of talent. Carusa herself has formed an excellent understanding with one of the all time greats of women’s football, Køge striker Nadia Nadim,
“I mean, it’s a privilege to be playing with a player like Nadia” Carusa earnestly declared. “I have been lucky enough to play with some really class players and internationally and in club across my career. But again, to be able to play with the likes of Nadia Nadim, like I mean, it’s actually, she makes you a better player.
“I say that there are very special players in the world that have this ability to pick up and raise the people around them, and she is definitely one of those players who challenges and is ruthless in that sense, but like in a way that you want her on your team and you want to be on her team because she makes you better.
“And again, like it’s for me, that partnership up top, it’s like with Ireland, with anywhere. It’s so important the way you play off each other, and to know that she plays off of me just as much as I play off of her. It really shows, like in the game tonight.
“It’s it’s a really, really dynamic duo, but yeah, it’s quite the privilege to be able to play with a player like Nadia.”
(Photo by Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images)
Kyra Carusa excited for ‘massive games’ in the UWCL with HB Køge
HB Køge are no strangers to a European challenge, they have already bested the Dutch, Scottish and Lithuanian champions this term. Next up for HB Køge in Europe is a home tie against Swiss champions Servette FC. Kyra Carusa looked ahead with palpable excitement to the rest of the League Phase,
“I mean, we have some massive games at home” Carusa beamed. “You know, Barcelona at home, Servette FC, Benfica, but also big games away.
“And again, I think that those teams are going to look at this game and think, okay, we’re going to have to really take this seriously because this is a team that can come in and win a game on any day.”