These days there is absolutely no doubt about the skills and talent of Arsenal captain and penalty specialist Kim Little.
But the Gunners legend may not have always been so well known.
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Early in her career, the Aberdeen-born midfielder left Hibernian to join Arsenal in 2008.
At just 17 years old, she joined a club packed with many of the biggest stars in women’s football, especially since Arsenal had just won a historic quadruple the previous season.
One such player was fellow Scot Julie Fleeting, who ended up winning no less than 17 major trophies with Arsenal during her nine years at the club.
Fleeting joined talkSPORT’s women’s football show where she caught up with former Gunners teammate Lianne Sanderson to reflect on their time together at the club.
And one memory that stood out for the four-time winners was the first time young Little arrived at Arsenal, ready to make her debut.
However, the rest of the team hadn’t been informed of their new signing, which ended up leading to some funny scenes.
Fleeting explained to talkSPORT exactly how the mix-up arose.
She said: “It was so funny because she was still a young player so not many people would have known who she was. She was traveling in the car, I think it was an away match. I I drove down that morning and Kim and her mother came with Colin (Julie’s husband) and me.
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“And she was obviously wearing normal clothes because she hadn’t gotten her kit or anything yet. She walked into the changing room and I remember everyone was looking at her – I just assumed Vic had said that we had recruited a new player. She arrived, it’s her first match of the weekend.
“She’s in the locker room, wearing a normal tracksuit. I remember you saying to her, ‘Who’s your friend?’ “You know she’s a signed player? And everyone said “No”.
“It was once he finished the team talk and left, and she was still in the locker room, I could see people looking at each other wondering, ‘Why is Fleets’ girlfriend hanging around? -she just for the team chat? What is she doing here? ‘And I remember you just thought I brought a friend!’
And Sanderson couldn’t help but laugh as he recalled his own confusion upon seeing Little in the locker room for the first time all those years ago.
She said: “Kim Little, one of the best players of all time – who is still playing now – I remember she came with you and we were wondering ‘Why did Fleets put her mate in the locker room ?’ Kim was about 17 then. We were like, “Oh, Fleets brought a family member.”
“Vic (Akers) is one of the best coaches I’ve ever had – the best guy – but he’s not the best communicator sometimes. And he just got the team talking and we think Fleets has his friend here – and then she was changing and it was Kim Little!
Little played for Arsenal until 2013, before joining American club Seattle Reign.
She also enjoyed huge success in the United States, winning two NWSL Shields with the club, before also winning two titles while on loan at Melbourne FC in 2016.
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But the Arsenal hero eventually returned to north London and has been an indispensable member of the team ever since.
The 33-year-old also scored 59 goals in an impressive 140 appearances for Scotland, before announcing her international retirement in 2021.
Calm, collected and an excellent leader, Little’s skills always shone through on the field.
Indeed, Fleeting went on to describe how all the confusion in the dressing room about Little before her debut turned into pure delight as soon as the midfielder played her first minutes on the pitch.
She recalls: “She was on the bench and I remember her coming in – just a young girl. Whoever was taken off must have said ‘I can’t believe I’m being replaced by Fleets’ mate!’
“She didn’t lose the ball once, she was just a young girl with a lot of confidence on the court, playing the ball. And after the game, I remember the players saying, ‘By the way, your friend can come back!’ “
You can follow talkSPORT’s women’s football show on Mondays from 7 p.m. on talkSPORT 2.
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