Veatriki Sarri made Greece proud and Brighton smile in 20 days
Back in September, new Brighton Women striker Veatriki Sarri spoke to England365 from Greece editor and WeAreBrighton.com contributor Dimitris Manakos about her first impressions of life at the Amex and her aims for 2022-23.
Sarri said: “My personal goals with Brighton are to have a full season with good performances and lots of goals. With the national team, we are clearly chasing the dream of qualifying for the World Cup.”
If there were a new interview now with Sarri, she would reflect on a strong start to life with Brighton Women. She has already made history with Brighton.
Greece might have missed out on the World Cup, but Sarri has been in scoring form for her country to give hope that a tournament appearance may be possible soon.
It is plausible that Sarri is currently better known in England than she is Greece. And we are not just talking about better known by Seagulls fans but across the whole country.
Sarri though will now become more famous in her own nation as the first Greek woman to be included in a FIFA videogame. Sarri has a card with her name thanks to her excellent performances in the WSL and her building her reputation in the sport.
It is well known how important FIFA is to younger adults and children. A large percentage of these two groups play and for many, it is how they first become aware of certain players.
In Greece, generations who may not be aware of Sarri or follow her closely will know we have a player in England with Brighton. She has expanded to a world that is not necessarily engaged in women’s football and the WSL.
This makes Veatriki Sarri an advertisement in Greece for Brighton and women’s football. She cannot have imagined as a child this to be possible or where her football career would go.
Moving onto the footballing side, Sarri has made six appearances at WSL level this year. Five in the starting line up and one more recorded in the League Cup, a 3-2 defeat to her former club Birmingham City.
Sarri scored her first goal in the Seagulls’ second win of the season. Brighton won 5-4 at West Ham with Sarri putting the team 2-1 ahead 12 minutes into the game.
The goal saw her excellent placement in the area and finish with her left foot. It made more history to go with her FIFA card, Sarri becoming the first Greek woman to score for two different English teams.
She had previously scored against Arsenal for Birmingham, a goal Sarri said was one of the most pivotal of her career. We now hope for many more in the colours of Brighton.
And as if all that was not enough, Sarri left the 7 shirt of Brighton to take over the 10 shirt of Greece when the national team played Cyprus.
Greece won, Sarri opened the scoring and the best month of her football career was confirmed. Within 20 days she was confirmed in FIFA, a Brighton scorer and a Greece scorer in a win for our improving team.
In the Veatriki Sarri interview with England365.gr and WeAreBrighton.com, Sarri praised Brighton and the infrastructure at her new club. It is certainly helping bring the best out of her.
She is now making her dreams come true, making Greece proud and showing the world that women’s football in Greece has prospects.
Sarri is putting Greek women on the map and is an example to everyone. We credit Brighton with her success and hope she continues to have Greece and the Seagulls smiling
Dimitris Manakos @dimitris_manakos / England365.gr
