Speaking during the tournament, Simi attributed her and the team’s success to two primary things: adaptation and enjoyment.
The midfielder admitted it was initially a challenge to shake off 11-a-side habits at a competition where there were plenty of nuances – including no offsides and unlimited rolling substitutions – but says United sought to do it from our first game against Roma, while still trying to carry over the basic principles of our dynamic every-week style.
“We’re all so used to playing 11-a-side where there’s the rules and the offsides. When you build those habits for so long, it’s so hard to just turn it off,” she explained to official broadcaster DAZN, before picking up her first Player of the Match award of the tournament after the Benfica clash.
“We’ve looked at it a lot, assessing the rules and seeing how we can still bring our style but be able to adjust to what sevens calls for. Also, recognising stretching the field and staying offside! That’s been a lot of fun to do on the pitch because it’s so much smaller. I think when you can find that [enjoyment], it just makes you want to do everything so much more 100 per cent.”
Awujo clearly thrived in the pressure-free environment, with her box-to-box buccaneering style a match for the tournament’s athletically fast-paced demands. We know she’s a quick adapter too, having gone about making the transition from college to professional football this season.
“You got forward, but you were everywhere,” former WSL forward Courtney Sweetman-Kirk told our no.13 after her second Player of the Match-winning display, in the semi-final victory over Man City. “You were making blocks, you were making tackles, you were driving forward, you were having shots too.”
