Chloe Mustaki has never been afraid to back herself.
Eighteen months ago - having overcome Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, and then battled back to fitness after a nightmare ACL injury - she was emboldened to seize the day, take a chance and follow her dreams.
And that's what she did. In July 2022, the wing-back parked the day job, moved to Bristol City from Shelbourne and completely committed herself to the game.
It was a move of conviction and one that was hardly without risk. Mustaki had been playing part-time and working in the financial services industry. Taking the plunge with Bristol saw her income reduced significantly.
But that decision has been vindicated, with the 28-year-old now playing in the Women's Super League and gifted with the memories of travelling to a World Cup with the Republic of Ireland.
She may not have seen as much international game time as she’d have liked, but Mustaki remains a squad regular; a calm, sensible and respected figure in the dressing room.
"The difference in level, the difference in movement of the opposition forward line, you can’t really compare it to the Championship," she says of life in the English top flight with the Robins.
"But it’s great, you know. It’s where I want to be, and I’ll just have to bide my time, get the opportunities when they come, take them and just keep working hard and hopefully get more minutes throughout the season.
"Previously, like a year and a half ago, I was still working, so to go from that to the WSL in a year and half, it's such a short amount of time, and I was injured for half of last season as well.
"So it’s been a bit of a bumpy road for me to say the least but I definitely think I'm able for the WSL. Do I have more to learn and lots more to go? Of course. Hopefully I’ll continue to feature more, particularly in league games, over the course of the season and then I’ll be a much better player at the end of the season than I was in the summer just gone."
Mustaki has form when it comes to raising her game. She was a surprise starter in Ireland’s World Cup qualifier against Sweden back in April 2022, winning just her second cap in Gothenburg against elite opponents. She delivered a foot-perfect performance to help the Girls in Green escape with a precious point.
She’ll hope to get a spin against either Hungary or Northern Ireland this week as Ireland wrap up their UEFA Nations League campaign.
They’ve already won the group and sealed promotion to League A. Now the players are determined to end Eileen Gleeson’s interim managerial reign with two more victories that would send them into the new year’s Euro 2025 qualifiers in flying form.
"It’s been a pretty historic year for us all, and for the history of women’s football in Ireland," adds Mustaki.
"What a fantastic experience. All of us feel privileged to have been able to go to [the World Cup]. To have four wins in the Nations League as well has been brilliant and we just hope to keep building on that, and to hopefully keep qualifying for major tournaments.
"This has been the start of something really special. I think since qualifying for the World Cup you can tell there’s real potential coming through in this country. I mean, there always has been but all the different pieces haven’t really fit together until last year I’d say.
"So it’s a really exciting time. We’ve been working hard over the past few years to get to where the National team is today.
"Though I’ve only played a tiny part in that, it’s really exciting and I’d say you’ll see a lot more from us anyway in the years to come."
Watch Republic of Ireland v Hungary in the UEFA Nations League on Friday from 7pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player, follow a live blog on RTÉ.ie/Sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to live commentary on 2fm
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