Yuliia Khrystiuk “can’t wait to get started” after joining up with her new teammates at the Club’s Training Centre.
The 23-year-old Ukrainian international winger joined Hibernian Women following six years in the United States.
She told Hibs TV: ““Honestly, [the move] came unexpectedly but I had already learned a whole new language, a new culture in America, and I think I was just ready for a new challenge and for a change.
“I’m just super excited to get to know the culture and learn a new accent again, it’s going to be awesome. Half the time I actually need to take it slow and understand them all, and then there’s just certain words I’m just not sure of!
“I was fortunate enough to get here on Friday and meet some of the girls and actually have two training sessions with the team – and I think the level is super great. The intensity is really high, the physicality is also pretty strong, so it is similar to what it was in America.
“It is strong technical football and the team is a mix of experienced girls as well as younger girls, so I think it’s a perfect environment for growth and improvement as a player.”
Khrystiuk’s still-budding football career has taken her from her homeland in Ukraine, where she grew up in the city of Vinnytsia, to the United States – where she played both collegiate and club football.
A career that has included promotion success and championship triumphs has all stemmed from a sibling bond – and progressed thanks to the family of a fellow Ukraine teammate and new league rival.
“I have an older brother and growing up I always wanted to spend more time with him and when he would go play football with the boys next to the apartment, I would always want to join.
“That’s how I started playing and fell in love with football.
“At 10 years old I went to my first girls training and started playing for the local club in Vinnytsia, Ukraine. That’s the first time they created a women’s club there. Once we all turned about 15 or 16 years old, we started playing in the adult championships.
