The Little Britain show to hit Japan: Scotland and Arsenal star Kim to captain Team GB for Olympics clash with host nation as Hege Riise rotates armband away from regular skipper Steph Houghton this summer
Scotland’s Kim Little is set to captain Team GB women’s footballers on Saturday against Japan in Sapporo — and will have no problems leading a mostly English team.
The diminutive Arsenal star, 31, is understood to be in line to take the armband as part of a rotational system employed by coach Hege Riise.
Midfielder Little is one of the few non-English players in the side, but says it feels ‘natural’ as they look to build on an impressive 2-0 opening victory over Chile and secure progression.
Kim LIttle (middle) will captain Team GB for their Olympics clash with Japan on Saturday
Coach Hege Riise will rotate the armband away from Steph Houghton (above) this summer
‘I obviously did it in 2012 and again it felt very easy and smooth at that time,’ she explained. ‘As players, whenever you come into a new team you just try to bring your best self. So I wouldn’t say it’s something the squad have spoken about, we’ve played with a number of the players over the years. It’s just quite natural.’
Little, who has 140 caps for Scotland, will relish the challenge when she is confirmed as skipper.
‘It will be a very proud moment,’ she said. ‘The way Hege’s put together this team, it’s full of players who lead in different ways.’
Little has praised the group of leaders that Team GB coach Riise (above) has assembled
The match against the host nation will take place behind closed doors but Little does not believe that will necessarily hand Team GB an advantage.
‘All footballers would say they’d much rather play with a crowd, regardless of whether they are for you or against you. Of course, that’s a big miss but it’s a must with the current circumstances with the pandemic,’ she said.
‘We’re going out there to perform, our job is to do what we need to inside those white lines and to make sure we get the points.’
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