In her own words, Mary Earps is at the ‘best place’ to take the next forward step in her celebrated career at PSG, and it comes as no surprise with the club unveiling their new world class training campus.
The England Lionesses goalkeeper touched down in Paris during the summer after deciding against extending her stay at Manchester United and now at France’s biggest club finds herself in an environment that is building excellence.
Her arrival was a huge coup for the Parisians both on the pitch and off it with Earps recognised as the best goalkeeper in the world and her status in the game putting renewed spotlight on women’s football in France.
While other clubs may choose to view their women’s teams as a mandatory add-on to the main focus of the men’s squads, PSG are leading the charge in making their female setup elite in its own right.
Make no mistake, one of Europe’s biggest clubs have been working relentlessly over the past three years to transform what was a muddy patch of Poissy turf into one of the world’s best training centres featuring 35,000sqm of state-of-the-art buildings and costing a cool £250m that has been entirely funded by the club.
Amidst a flurry of snow that covered the PSG Campus on its official inauguration day, Earps sat down with Mail Sport to discuss her time in Paris so far and why she feels truly valued in her new setting.
Mary Earps is loving life in Paris after deciding to make an audacious summer move to PSG
The Lionesses goalkeeper cut time on club football in England to make the switch to France
PSG unveiled their new state-of-the-art complex last Thursday that has cost the club £250m
‘I’m really enjoying it so far. It’s a totally different challenge and that’s exactly what I wanted. I think we’re growing together as a team all the time and that’s showing,’ said Earps.
‘It’s unbelievable [the training campus]. I came here on my on my signing day and saw it for the first time. It’s incredible.
‘It’s massive, it’s state of the art, it’s got everything that you need and I think that’s what’s really important and it was one of the things that drew me to the club.
‘I’m really enjoying being in a training facility like this,’ the England goalkeeper added.
In England, Earps has benefitted from training at St Georges Park with the national team, but at club level previously starred for Man United while training in facilities that are now set to be redeveloped.
United’s Carrington training complex is largely outdated and in need of refurbishment, so it came as no major surprise when the club’s INEOS team chaired by Sir Jim Ratcliffe made it one of their top priorities to upgrade the centre.
In Paris, they are already several steps ahead of their European rivals when it comes to creating an environment that gives players the platform to reach their greatest potential.
No stone is being left unturned in the quest to achieve greatness with the club investing heavily in the men’s team, the youth set-up (that are put through their school qualifications in-house alongside football), and the women’s team where Earps is playing a pivotal role.
Earps admitted to Mail Sport that she is now in the ‘best place’ after leaving Manchester United
PSG’s new state-of-the-art training complex is amongst the biggest in the world
Earps hailed PSG for being the new ‘gold standard’ in women’s football after the club’s new training facilities were unveiled
Work is set to get underway soon on building a new training centre and pitches dedicated to the women’s team, with Earps hailing PSG for being the ‘gold standard’ in women’s football.
‘I think every club is really different. For me, this is a gold standard of where everything should be,’ she said.
‘Sometimes people then think that you’re looking for like big flashy things or massive buildings with everything, all the latest technology and sometimes that does come with it, but it’s just about having what you need.
‘That’s what’s really important and I think you can see this improving at clubs all the time. It’s great to see the women’s team being integrated into that.
‘I think that’s one of the things about PSG’s vision about trying to be the best on and off the pitch, and that feeds into it with this facility. I felt like it was the best place for me to improve and become the best version of myself and continue to push.
‘I really enjoyed the last few years and I’ve enjoyed some great success but that is not where I wanted to just stay,’ said Earps.
Admittedly it hasn’t all been plain sailing for the 31-year-old who was crowned the latest Sports Personality of the Year and adjusting to life in France has come with its own challenges.
Learning a new language, settling into a new team and performing at the level that continues to guarantee her place between the sticks for Sarina Wiegman’s England team are all challenges Earps has to deal with.
PSG have completed work on their training centre with the £250m development funded by the club
Earps is embracing life in Paris as many knew she would and is getting to grips with the new league
PSG have audacious plans to build a new dedicated training centre for their women’s team
But, instead of being wary of new frontiers, Earps is embracing life in Paris as many knew she would and believes leaving the Women’s Super League is only going to benefit her career.
‘There are lots of little things that accumulate, that maybe you don’t anticipate until you move to a different country. Obviously I’ve done it before, so I was expecting a lot of it’ stated Earps.
‘Of course, France is a completely different country, different language, different culture, a different way of doing things. So there’s the off the pitch stuff as well and then on the pitch you’re talking about a different philosophy, a different style of playing again, a completely different football language.
‘I mean, even when you look at the goalkeeper coach- here the goalkeeper coach is left-footed and that makes a difference. I think there’s just lots of little challenges.
‘I’d like to think that I’m getting better at each day and you start to feel like you settle. But it takes a while when you move to a new team, especially when it’s a different country learning French, I’m trying,’ she added.
Earps’ arrival has coincided with PSG challenging European giants Lyon for the Premiere Ligue title with the club just one point off top spot and the England shot-stopper making spectacular saves in crucial fixtures.
Soon, she will head back to England to link-up with the Lionesses for upcoming clashes against USA – with Wembley expected to sell out – and Switzerland.
The Nottingham-born goalkeeper is an advocate for growing the women’s game and believes it is becoming a growing force, but warned there is still much to be done to raise awareness and financial stability in women’s football.
‘I know- it’s crazy [Lionesses selling out Wembley]. I like to look back on kind of how far women’s football has come since the 2022 win and you can see I think it’s continuing to go from strength to strengthen.
‘Hopefully, we can we continue to push that. I think there are still battles that we face and things that we can improve and things that we can do – the small wins that keep adding up.
‘I think it has come a long way in a short space of time and of course it’s important to recognise that. I could never have anticipated being in a building like this, playing for PSG. You know, five years ago I wouldn’t have dreamt that.
‘It’s just come such a long way. We’re obviously not there yet, but I’m hoping that we’re going to get to that level where everyone can just focus on football, where they don’t have to think about everything else around it, and not just the top clubs, not just the top percent.
‘And I think that’s probably where there’s a bit of a discrepancy, where there’s a bit of a difference at the moment. We also need to make sure that we’re taking care of grassroots, and not just the top leagues,’ said Earps.
At PSG, Earps has found a club that is actively investing in the high ambitions they have laid out with their world renowned training facility a landmark statement that other European sides will be taking notice of.
By laying the foundations for success with an unrivalled campus, it’s only a matter of time before other English players find themselves following Earps to a club that cares about more than just on-pitch success.
