Buet sets sights on Champions League

Midfielder Dani Buet wants Brighton Ladies to aim for the Champions League in the coming years.
Dani Buet. Picture by Geoff Penn/BHAFCDani Buet. Picture by Geoff Penn/BHAFC
Dani Buet. Picture by Geoff Penn/BHAFC

Albion will be full-time and move up into the top tier of women’s football in England next season and Buet feels it’s an exciting time in the club’s history.

The Seagulls sit third in WSL 2 and Buet, who has eight caps for England, says joining the club was the best decision she has made.

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Buet played for Arsenal and Chelsea and was then at Notts County when the club was liquidated in April, 2017.

She joined Albion in June last year and has not looked back. She wants Brighton to compete with the best clubs in the top tier and on the club’s future said: “It’s unbelievably exciting.

“Brighton have backed us from the very start. When I first came in the ambition was to play in the top tier, play against the best teams in this country and hopefully try to compete in the Champions League.

“We need to develop as a team but there’s no reason why we can’t go on and compete against the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea and ultimately, one day, we’d like to be competing in the Champions League.

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“This club and women’s football in general is on the up. It’s quite exciting for our generation and the team right now because we’re almost the next stepping stone.

“We’re going to take the first step of taking Brighton into the top flight, so it’s very exciting and the girls are very much looking forward to it.”

Albion have played the top two teams in WSL 1 in cup competitions this season, losing 3-0 to Chelsea and 2-0 to Manchester City.

Looking ahead to coming up against the best teams in the country week in, week out, next season, Buet said: “The girls we’ve got here are a group of winners.

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“We want to win every game and believe we can win. We want to do our best but at the same time we’re not silly.

“We’ve got a lot of inexperienced players that haven’t been at that level, so it’s going to be eye-opening. But we have character, resilience and determination. With that attitude, there’s no reason why we can’t get results against good teams.”

Buet was named Albion Ladies’ player of the season at the club’s Players’ Awards Dinner last month and on her decision to join the club, she said: “Notts County got liquidated so I didn’t want to rush into a decision.

“I was at a point where I had a little break from football and needed a little bit more enjoyment again. I wanted to pick a team I wanted to stay at for a long period and this was the right move for me.

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“Within minutes of coming down to the training facilities, this is where I knew I wanted to be and it’s the best decision I’ve made.

“As soon as I came here, I knew the ambition of the club, I knew where it wanted to be with women’s football and how it treated the women’s football team here. There was no other team I wanted to be at.

“I’ve loved every minute of being at this club and long may it continue.”

Albion beat Aston Villa 2-1 on Sunday after first half goals from Kirsty Barton and Ini Umotong, although manager Hope Powell said: “It wasn’t the best day, but I think the most important thing was the three points.”

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Brighton remain third in the table, seven points behind leaders Doncaster with a game in hand, and are just a point behind second-placed Millwall.

Albion entertain bottom club Watford at Culver Road, Lancing, on Sunday (2pm) and then travel to Watford for the return league fixture on Wednesday.

The Seagulls then complete their season with matches against Durham and Millwall. Powell feels Albion’s level of performance will need to rise and speaking after the win against Villa, said: “It’s back to the drawing board and we go again. The performances have got to be better than that in the games we’ve got coming up.

“Watford will have pride to play for and will be battling to prove a point that they’re still capable of competing at this level, so we’ve got to be mindful of that and perform better than we did today.”