“The ambition of the club is massive” are the first words Aimee Claypole tells me about her new club Nottingham Forest, newly of the WSL 2.
Claypole knows all about ambition, she is a product of the Chelsea academy, one of the most competitive in world football.
Yet Claypole is ready for an exciting new challenge, “I think they’ve [Forest] shown that [ambition] with the investment into the women’s side, which I think is really important, especially off the back of the success of the EUROs again for England.”
Claypole this summer made the seismic decision to join Nottingham Forest and leave Chelsea, the club she has been with for 10 years,
“It just felt like it was the right move, the right move for me at the right time. And I couldn’t really say, no.”
The lethal forward sat down to speak with The Halfway Line about all things Nottingham Forest, her time at Chelsea and her Finnish roots.
Claypole excited to play at ‘such a historic stadium’
When you think about a side from Nottingham at the top level of women’s football you are more likely to think of Notts County than of Forest.
However that mindset is changing, just 270m down the road from Meadow Lane is the City Ground, home to the newest WSL 2 club. That famous old ground will play host to Forest’s women’s side who are playing at the highest level they ever have in the WSL era and Claypole is ready to be a part of it.
“I’m so excited” she admitted with delight.
“When I did my media and medical and had a look around, it was unbelievable. It just shows the ambition behind the club that they want the women to play at that stadium, because it’s got unbelievable facilities.
“I can’t wait to hopefully make my debut and get my first minutes [against Newcastle], especially being at home at the city ground. It’d be nice to play in such a historic stadium.”
Claypole prides herself on being an ‘out and out number nine’
If you haven’t seen too much of Aimee Claypole’s game before, never fear, she was able to explain to The Halfway Line about just how she operates on the pitch.
“I’m more of a sort of hold up number nine, like an out and out number nine, that’s kind of what I pride myself on” Claypole tells me.
“I want to get on the ball, I like to score goals, of course” she admits with a mischievous grin.
“And yeah, I back myself in every area of the pitch, whether it’s left foot, right foot, or a header. I hope to continue to build on that.
“Of course [there are] other areas of my game to work on and to sit down with Carly [Davies] and to work out how to fit into the system at Forest. I’m excited to get started and [to] work on those areas and maximize my development.”
Claypole put her personal targets for the season as simply as they come.
“I just want to score as many goals as possible!”
Claypole on ‘hard decision’ to leave Chelsea
This summer Claypole left her childhood club Chelsea to join Nottingham Forest. The Halfway Line asked the young striker how she felt about that move.
“I was at the club for 10 years” Claypole thoughtfully tells me.
“I grew up there, so moving away was difficult. It was a hard decision, but I think, well, I hope, it’s gonna be the right one.
“I think it just came at a time where I needed to prioritize my own development off the back of like a good second spell in the championship last year.”
Claypole was referring to her brilliant loan spell at Durham. The English striker won the WSL Championship Player of the Month for March and was nominated for Player of the Season after moving in January.
“It just felt right to go into that environment for a longer period of time, hopefully get more minutes and continue to build on that momentum” she admits.
“It was a difficult decision, but sometimes you just have to prioritize what’s best for my development.
“[With] the opportunity of Forest coming up, and the projection of the club: the facilities, the infrastructure all of that sort of stuff is very professional. I hope it’s going to be a good fit.”
To play in the Champions League was ‘massive’ says Claypole
Claypole had a unique season last year, of course she finished the season in the WSL 2 with Durham but the first half she spent in Sweden. Claypole signed on loan at Linköping to experience one of the most fiercely competitive leagues in Europe in the Dammallsvenskan. With Linköping, she got her first taste of UEFA Women’s Champions League football.
“It was a bit of an all over the place season for me” Claypole smiles.
“The opportunity came up last summer to go out to Sweden and play abroad, and it was something that I always wanted to do.
“And I thought with it being a loan, you know, it’s only short term, so what’s the worst that can happen? And I just thought, I’m going to chuck myself [in], test myself. See how I can handle different environments.
“I grew a lot as a player and a person out there. Champions League experience was massive for me.
“[Playing in the Champions League] It was amazing, probably a career highlight for me.
“I was only 18 at the time, you grow up watching the Champions League and [it is] something that you dream of. I’m really grateful to Linköping for giving me the opportunity.”
Claypole on representing Finland ‘the door is never closed’
Little known about the Forest striker is that as well as being eligible to play for England she is also able to play for Finland. She qualifies for the Boreal Owls through her mother who is from Suomi.
At under 15s level Claypole even represented Finland before playing at further youth levels for the nation of her birth, but she is yet to have her first senior cap.
“I’ve obviously been with the England set up for the youth age group, so then I haven’t really looked at Finland” Claypole admitted.
“Obviously [I] did that tournament in the under fifteens which was [an] unbelievable opportunity. Since then [I’ve] been with England.
“Maybe it’s something I’ll look to in the future. I’ve not thought too hard about it. [I] watched them in the Euros and thought they played really well, [they] probably deserved a little bit more than what they got. So yeah, it’s exciting.
“It’s nice to also have that option of dual nationality as well. So, yeah, the door is never closed.”
“We’re going for it, which I love” says Claypole on promotion goal
Speaking to Claypole I start to get the distinct impression she rarely finishes second in anything she does. “We’re definitely going to go for promotion” Claypole affirms when asked what the target is for newly promoted Forest this season.
“The actual opportunity of three teams potentially getting promotion is massive. I think you can see that with the intention behind the signings.
“I think the club have really brought in some valuable players with valuable experiences who know what it takes to win, who know what it’s like to play in the next level.
“So yeah, I’m hoping that we can all gel together. And yeah, we’re going to go for it, which I love.”
Nottingham Forest secured promotion from the National League last season under the management of Carly Davies. Who Claypole was impressed with before joining the project.
“Carly [Davies] was a big reason why I wanted to go to Nottingham” she explains.
“I think the experience that she has as a coach previously at Aston Villa when they were in the WSL 2 and in the WSL. She’s got that experience that we need as a club to be able to push on to the next level.
“Her level of detail is insane, and that’s something I really thrive off as a player. I’m really analytical in that way so it’s nice to have a coach who matches that.”
Nottingham Forest and Claypole kick off their WSL 2 season on Sunday 7th September at 2pm against Newcastle United at the City Ground.
