\n It\u2019s late at Stamford Bridge. The stadium tours are over. Staff have gone home. And there is quiet throughout. Yet one person stands alone on the pitch \u2013 and it is someone who has always been synonymous with Arsenal.
\n <\/p>\n
You could forgive Katie McCabe if she had been apprehensive. After all, she\u2019s only ever played for one club in the Women\u2019s Super League, and it happens to be our closest London rival.<\/p>\n
Yet it quickly becomes clear she is home, that this moment is a childhood dream realised.<\/p>\n
Growing up, McCabe followed in her Chelsea-supporting brother\u2019s footsteps by idolising the title-winning Jose Mourinho side that contained Damien Duff \u2013 her all-time hero \u2013 on the left, Didier Drogba up front and Arjen Robben on the right.<\/p>\n
And when she is ready to discuss becoming a Blue, McCabe\u2019s energy is contagious. She takes great delight in picking up the Chelsea shirts emblazoned with her name and looking out across Stamford Bridge with wonder.<\/p>\n
\u2018I\u2019m a hugger!\u2019 she says as she goes around greeting the small group of Chelsea staff entrusted to capture content for her unveiling. Then comes the first question, and it\u2019s an obvious one given McCabe has made the switch across London.<\/p>\n
Why Chelsea and why now?<\/p>\n
\u2018Look, for me, having spent 10 years at a club like Arsenal has been amazing in a sense, but for me, I achieved all I could achieve with them,\u2019 she says with honesty. \u2018At this point in my career, I\u2019m ready for a new start, a new challenge, and a new chapter.<\/p>\n
\u2018Having had talks with Sonia and the club, I really got to grips with their ambitions, how they want to drive it and the direction they want to go in.<\/p>\n
\u2018That’s something I’m really passionate about. Having played against Chelsea for so long, I know their ambitions and their winning mentality. I’m still ready for that at this point in my career, and I feel I can give a lot to the club and the fans. I’m so excited to get going.<\/p>\n
\u2018I’m at a stage in my career where I’ve grown into a very strong leadership role, from being at Arsenal but also being captain of Ireland for so long. I think those attributes say a lot about me as a player and as a person.<\/p>\n
\u2018I like to drive standards on and off the pitch. I like to get around the younger players and really try to get the best out of them and understand them.<\/p>\n
\u2018I’ve thoroughly enjoyed working so hard throughout my career. That’s what I really relate to going into a club like Chelsea: the passion that all the players have for the club and their ambition to drive it forward. That’s something I want to be a part of as well.\u2019<\/p>\n
Chelsea supporters know full well that McCabe is a fierce competitor, and she is now ready to channel that explosive energy into winning with the Blues instead of trying to beat us.<\/p>\n
She smiles when she says she has enjoyed the rivalry over the years. But when one of your fiercest opponents becomes your biggest ally, it becomes almost a double bonus.<\/p>\n
\u2018Matches against Chelsea have been some of the best battles from my time at Arsenal,\u2019 says McCabe. \u2018That London rivalry has been something that’s grown over the course of the last 10 years.<\/p>\n
\u2018Being at a club like Chelsea, we have character in abundance here. That\u2019s one of the main things that I’ve related to. You’re able to express yourself and be yourself and show the passion on the pitch.<\/p>\n
\u2018I always wear my heart on my sleeve when I’m playing, and I’m just really excited to show that in a blue shirt going forward.\u2019<\/p>\n
We dig a little deeper, and under the surface is McCabe\u2019s deep hero worship for a player who represented Ireland and won the Premier League twice with Chelsea. She is delighted to be following in his footsteps in addition to being free to express her love for the Blues.<\/p>\n
\u2018Growing up, my brother was a passionate Chelsea supporter,\u2019 she says. \u2018As a young sister, I idolised him. He grew up playing football too and represented Shamrock Rovers over in the League of Ireland. I wanted to be like him.<\/p>\n
\u2018Then there was Damien Duff. He was No.11, left wing, playing for Ireland, and that’s who I was as well. I was a left footer, and I just wanted to be just like him. I always mirrored my game off him.<\/p>\n
\u2018It’s surreal for me now, sitting here in Stamford Bridge and thinking he’s played in so many games here. It makes me feel really proud.<\/p>\n
\u2018Being at Stamford Bridge, being able to kind of be as close to his career as possible, is amazing. When he knows the information, maybe, he’ll be very proud, too.<\/p>\n
\u2018Growing up, I always wanted the latest Chelsea shirt at birthdays and Christmases, and I’ve had so many over the years, for sure.\u2019<\/p>\n
In terms of realising her dream of representing Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, McCabe has joined at the perfect moment.<\/p>\n
The Blues will play our Women’s Super League home fixtures at the famous stadium from next season, and the left-back is planning to play her part in helping us to push on and grow even further.<\/p>\n
\u2018I think it\u2019s where the women’s game is going, you know?\u2019 she continues. \u2018Chelsea have built an amazing fan base at Kingsmeadow for so long. They’ve been so successful in that, with the trophies they’ve won as well.<\/p>\n
\u2018So, I think for Chelsea as a football club, it was the right step for them to take.<\/p>\n
\u2018Playing on the other side, we’ve had some amazing games here at Stamford Bridge. I’ve seen the atmosphere the Chelsea fans have created, which has been so special. Being on the other side of it, you feel the effect it can have.<\/p>\n
\u2018The fact that the club are now in a position where we can really push on that and grow, I think that\u2019s amazing. I’m really excited and hopefully, there’ll be a few Ireland flags in the crowd.\u2019<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve no doubts about that as, having already followed in the footsteps of her childhood hero, McCabe is ready to turn more dreams into reality at Stamford Bridge.<\/p>\n