Buffalo gals, won’t you come out tonight? Celtic’s American Blogger Larry Cafiero

While a lot of the focus on “who will Celtic sign” is aimed primarily on the men’s team at the moment, the newly professional Celtic FC Women have been hard at work, signing players and a new coach.

Not only is the focus on quality players local, Celtic FC Women have been looking abroad as well, and the squad is bolstered by two American stars, Summer Green and Sarah Teegarden.

I wish they all could be California ghirls: Born in Arcadia and raised in nearby Monrovia in Southern California, Sarah Teegarden grew up a star in the area as a player for Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, before a stellar college career at Wake Forest University in North Carolina. She was captain for two years while starting all 75 games she played for the Demon Deacons, logging a total of 6,648 career minutes on the pitch.

Teegarden sandwiched a short stop with the North Carolina Courage of the National Women’s Soccer League in 2018 between a stint with Gotenborg FC women in 2017, where she spent most of her European playing time, and Lille OSC in 2019.

Summer Green, a forward, graduated a year early from high school in Michigan in order to start her college soccer career at the University of North Carolina (incidentally, a rival of Teegarden’s alma mater, Wake Forest). A mainstay in the USA teams at the U-17, U-20, and U-23 levels, Green has the distinction of setting a record of 12 goals in five games during the CONACAF qualifications as a U-17 player in 2012; a feat that included three hat-tricks during the tournament.

After being drafted in 2016 by the Seattle Reign in the NWSL, Green sat out the season due to an injury she picked up in the NCAA college tournament. She was traded to the Chicago Red Stars for a draft pick the following season, and played for Chicago before moving to Vittsjo in Sweden in 2019.

It’s great that both Teegarden and Green bolster an already strong Celtic Women squad, joining new signees Chloe Logan, Keeva Keenan, Chloe Craig, Sarah Ewens and Natalie Ross, all of whom have agreed to new professional contracts with the club, along with new head coach Fran Alonso.

And when Alonso was interviewed on local television in Scotland I’m reliably informed that he said that the first person to wish him well in his new role at Celtic was none other that former Hoops hero Victor Wanyama, who really does love the club.

Here is a video of the new head coach Fran Alonso taking about his move to Celtic and his ambitions in his new job.

“I was in England, which is one of the best leagues in the world – with France and Germany – and I can hear it, you don’t say no to Celtic,” Alonso said. “It’s a statement by a massive club and that attracts players of course.

“We’ve already got some targets – I’ve been talking to the decision makers. We want Celtic to be very successful in the women’s side as well as the men’s, and will bring in the best players we can.”

And Alonso has Glasgow City, who have won the last 13 SWPL1 titles, in his sights.

“We will try our best to challenge for the title but it’s a transition from last year to this year and it’s about how quickly we can adjust,” he said to the Media, as reported by BBC Scotland.

“City have to be favourites, but what a nice challenge for us that they’re the team to beat. And if we do achieve it one year it will be like ‘wow!’ – that’s what a club like Celtic should be achieving.

“In the next two or three years I think we will have to fight to be in the Champs League.”

Larry Cafiero

’67 in the heat of Felton – a view of Celtic FC from Central California coast by Larry Cafiero.

Latest news on the blog is that Celtic News Now will now carry all future ’67 in the heat of Felton blog posts!

About Author

The Celtic Star founder and editor, who has edited numerous Celtic books over the past decade or so including several from Lisbon Lions, Willie Wallace, Tommy Gemmell and Jim Craig. Earliest Celtic memories include a win over East Fife at Celtic Park and the 4-1 League Cup loss to Partick Thistle as a 6 year old. Best game? Easy 4-2, 1979 when Ten Men Won the League. Email editor@thecelticstar.co.uk

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