Although she made the move from Lyon – another of Europe’s elite women’s football teams – she has found some key differences since the move to Chelsea.

Carpenter feels she has already progressed on a personal level, and when we sat down with the Australia international at our winter training camp in Portugal, she explained why there is plenty more to come from her.

‘It’s been exciting, new, different and challenging,’ she said. ‘All of those things. But I’ve really enjoyed my first few months at Chelsea.

‘I came from a similar, elite environment when I joined from Lyon, where the team always want to win and are not happy with anything but the three points.

‘Those are the similarities, but the biggest difference is that it's harder to get those wins in England. For that reason, it’s great for me to be in this environment to push myself and have to really step up.

‘It's been an easy group to come into. I’m an easy-going person, quite bubbly, and I can have a laugh, so I think I fit in pretty well.

‘I’m creating those relationships on the pitch now. I think I’m only going to get stronger for the rest of the season and for seasons to come. I want to keep improving to become an even better footballer.

‘I feel like I have so much more to learn and give, and here at Chelsea, I can become an even better version of myself because I’ve already grown in a short space of time.’

Chelsea have won the last six consecutive Women’s Super League titles and went unbeaten in all domestic competitions last season.

This time around, the path has not been as straightforward as we currently sit in second place in the table, nine points below leaders Man City with 27 points still to play for.

Carpenter had been watching from afar before she made the move to England and noticed a constant improvement in the standard of opposition teams.

The athletic wing-back is also appreciative of the stage that playing in England provides and feels that more people understand her skillset since moving from Lyon.

‘I think the WSL is the best competition there is for women's football,’ she said. ‘No game is easy, and no team is simple to play against.

‘I think the standard is even higher than last season, from watching some of the games. The competitiveness is what drew me to this league, and knowing every match you have to go out there and play at your best level, otherwise you won’t win

‘I wanted to show myself coming here. I am still quite young, but I was in the French League for five years, and I feel like it's not really well known, but so many people watch the WSL.

‘I think some people were quite surprised about how I've been performing. I’ve been doing that for five years, but not many people have seen it.’

Only Millie Bright (19) has made more starts for Chelsea than Carpenter (16) this season, and the Australian has two goals to her name. Her first came at Stamford Bridge in a 2-0 win over London City Lionesses, and her second was against Barcelona – also at the Bridge – and was voted by supporters as our best strike of 2025.

‘I don't score many goals, but that one was a highlight, one of the best goals I've scored in my career,’ Carpenter recounted. ‘For me now, it’s about my end product. I want to get on the scoresheet a bit more, and sometimes I’m playing higher up in the different formations we play.

‘Scoring that goal was an amazing feeling, especially at the Bridge. It was an electric atmosphere in front of our fans and against high-level opposition, too.’

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