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Aston Villa have signed midfielder Ramona Petzelberger from SGS Essen, as she becomes the fourth German to sign for the club in two years.
Words: Regan Foy | @findfoy
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Aston Villa Women have added another player to their squad this afternoon, and another to their cohort of German players, signing Ramona Petzelberger from SGS Essen.
This comes after Marisa Ewers joined the club last summer from Birmingham City Women, and was followed this summer post-promotion by Lisa Weiß and today’s other signing Caro Siems.
Ramona has spent the duration of her career in Germany, between the second division and the Fraulen-Bundesliga. She has represented SG Wattenscheid 09, SC 07 Bad Neuenahr and Bayer 04 Leverkusen – where she will have been introduced to now once-again team-mate Marisa Ewers. She has been at SGS Essen since 2017, appearing 24 times for them and scoring seven goals.
Petzelberger has also represented the German youth sides from under-16 to under-20 level, becoming European champion at the under-17 and under-19 youth levels, and coming runner up in the under-20 Women’s World Cup in 2012.
The German midfielder feels like moving to Aston Villa is a new step in her career, and something she’s ready for.
“It’s a new experience for me, but I like it and I’m happy here now.”
“I knew a lot about the club because Marisa Ewers is a good friend of mine.”
“She’s taught me a lot, so yes I’m prepared for it!”
She’s also excited to join the ‘best league in the world at the moment’ with the ‘best players’ and the ‘best teams’.
Speaking to club media, Head Coach Gemma Davies has said that she is ‘delighted’ to have signed Petzelberger.
“She has a huge amount of experience in the German Bundesliga, and is a very technical player who likes to make key passes that unlock defences.”
“Ramona is exceptionally fit and can operate box-to-box with ease.”
The German cohort is now well-established at the club, and could continue to grow with a number of weeks still until the season is set to begin in early September.
We can’t wait to see the new signings on the pitch!
