I'M SO PROUD TO BE A PART OF THIS HISTORY

Momiki can't wait for Blues' first run-out at new stadium

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That's something that Yuka Momiki has learned quickly since making her summer switch to Everton Women from Leicester City. Speaking at Leisure United Jericho Lane ahead of a session with a local grassroots club who will join the Blues' players before being surprised with some tickets for today's Women's Super League game against Manchester United at Hill Dickinson Stadium, Momiki told the ECHO: "I really enjoy it. If you walk in the city, you can see either blue or red.

"My nearest cafe is run by Evertonians and I always say 'hi' to them. If we win, then after the game they give me a high-five and that's rare to see; in Tokyo, that never happens.

"In Leicester, rugby is big and so is cricket, and when I was there, I was living outside of the city centre, so I didn't see so much. Being in Liverpool is so much different to the others, but I like that intensity.

"When I started football, there was no professional league for women in Japan, so I didn't dream about this (playing for a living), but I always wanted to be the best, both on the pitch, but also the best version of myself. That desire brought me here.

"When I was playing in Sweden (after starting her career with Nippon TV Tokyo Verdy Beleza in the Kita ward of Tokyo, she turned out for Linkoping), we could see that the Women's Super League was the best league in the world, so from that point, I always wanted to come to England to play football.