Jen Beattie insists she is “nowhere near done” as she looks ahead to another season with Arsenal.
The 32-year-old Scot is in her second spell with the club, having first joined in 2009 and had subsequent stints with Montpellier, Manchester City and Melbourne City before returning to north London in 2019.
She signed a contract extension last month and is loving every minute of life with the Gunners.
“Each or every contract extension, I’m more and more grateful for because I don’t want to retire,” Beattie told the PA news agency. “I’m nowhere near done and I love being at such a top club at a top level.
More than happy to be extending my contract. Home ❤️ @ArsenalWFC pic.twitter.com/1p8d2M3nSP
— Jen Beattie (@jbeattie91) June 30, 2023
“It definitely makes me more proud to still be a part of it, having seen the game go from amateur, semi-pro to professional.
“I think I was about 22 when I first got my professional contract – that’s quite late, considering how long I’ve played.
“It’s amazing, you never dream of playing at the Emirates in front of sell-out crowds, so to do that last year and to hope to still do that again next year or in the next couple of years is just exciting.”
Beattie’s contract extension announcement came two days after she was made an MBE at Windsor Castle for services to football and charity.
The centre-back has worked with charities to raise awareness about cancer after making her own recovery from breast cancer.
“It was incredible,” Beattie said. “Chatting to Prince William will always be one of the most surreal moments I’ve had.
“Windsor Castle was obviously an incredible place and stunning, just one of those things you never expect. It’s never on your radar when you start playing football so it was definitely a special day.”
Beattie was diagnosed with breast cancer during October 2020 and underwent radiotherapy while still playing football.
She has made a full recovery and praised the football community for helping her to raise awareness.
“It was without a doubt one of the most difficult periods of my life,” she said.
“I thought if we can all come together and have open and honest conversations about raising awareness – I was 29 with no family history and I think that’s important to say that it can happen to anyone, but if you find it early enough it can be OK.
“So getting checks is important – especially over Covid, and the middle of lockdown, the number of cancers being diagnosed had dropped massively – so I think speaking about it and raising that awareness meant a lot to me.
“I’ll always credit the football community, who were incredible during that time, because I might have started the conversation by talking about myself, but the football community definitely made it as big as it could’ve been.
“I’m so thankful for that, for spreading the word.”
Beattie is an ambassador for the McDonald’s Fun Football programme, the largest grassroots programme in the UK for 5-11 year olds, where 250,000 children have had access to free football in the last 12 months.
Her attention now turns to a new season with Arsenal, who were affected last season by injuries to key players including Beth Mead, Vivianne Miedema and Leah Williamson.
Despite this, the Gunners lifted the Continental Tyres Cup, finished third in the Women’s Super League and reached the Women’s Champions League semi-finals, and Beattie has set her sights high for the 2023-24 campaign.
“If we get everyone back fit, onto the pitch, it’s scary what hopefully we can achieve,” she added.
“Like most people, when you get a taste for something, you just want more. But Arsenal and the way it’s run, the players that we bring in, the staff we have behind the scenes, that’s what we all want.
“That’s why we’re at Arsenal – to win trophies. That’s where we got back to with the League Cup final and that’s what we want next year.”
:: Jen Beattie was speaking at the largest ever McDonald’s Fun Football session to celebrate the landmark of over 250,000 children from across the UK benefiting from access to free football this season. Sign up to a free session near you at www.mcdonalds.co.uk/football
