NOBODY with a passing acquaintance of Lisa Evans would have been astonished to see pictures of the 24-year-old share a Munich balcony with Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery last summer. The effervescent winger from Perth isn’t slow at coming forward, on or off the pitch.
Evans has played for almost five seasons in Germany, first on the eastern, austere, side of the old Berlin Wall with Turbine Potsdam, and since 2015 amid the western affluence of Bayern Munich. The Bayern men’s and women’s sides were both Bundesliga champions last year, hence the double celebrations at the town hall.
It is a far cry from St Johnstone Girls, where Evans played her youth football. But it was there that she was spotted by the coach who remains, along with her father Richard, the biggest influence on her career.
“I had really good opportunities to work with Eddie Wolecki Black, who was Perth-based and got on well with my parents,” she says. When Wolecki Black got the job as head coach of Glasgow City, Evans was one of three players he took to the club.
“Eddie is probably the best coach I’ve ever had – so good and so thorough,” she says. “He taught me so much about the game, which I’m thankful for.”
Ironically, Evans’ move to Germany followed a crushing Champions League defeat for Glasgow City. It was inflicted by Potsdam, but their legendary coach Bernd Schroder saw enough in the teenager to offer a trial – and a professional contract later followed.
“When I went on trial I thought I can’t come here,” Evans recalls. “Then they made an offer and it was s*** I’m going to have to try this. It was too good to turn down to be honest.”
Almost five years later, and fluent in the language, the forward loves Germany and its people.
“It sounds like a cliche, but they are really efficient and do things well,” she says. “Once you get to know them, they open up. Being there has changed me quite a lot. They are more disciplined, and big about punctuality. Before I got used to it I had a lot of fines to pay. They are really serious about their football. I really love it. In my opinion it’s the best league in the world in women’s football.”
Evans can be a key player for Scotland at the Euros this summer. She is fast, direct and, as she showed against Austria in Nicosia on Monday, capable of scoring a spectacular goal.
She could do with grabbing more for the national side. She has 13 in 57 games, with the highlight being a first-half hat-trick in a 4-3 win against Holland in 2014.
“I create more goals than I score, so that is something I would definitely like to add to my game,” she says of her roles with club and country.
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