When Aitana Bonmati was a child she had two obsessions, they being books and football. She read voraciously. She played compulsively.

One random day her mother, concerned with how unforgiving her daughter could be on herself, said something that altered the course of the budding footballer’s life forever.

There was just the two of them in the room in that moment, and the multiple Ballon d’Or winner has subsequently only spoken of the interaction in general terms. It is therefore necessary to paraphrase.

The gist of what was said was this: Aitana, we’re proud of you. We are happy to see you pursue your goals so determinedly. But do you think you would also benefit from working on yourself?

So she did. A year away from joining Barcelona’s famed La Masia youth academy, and aged just 13, Bonmati sought out a sports psychologist, principally with the aim of overcoming a seemingly impossible contradiction.

That’s because the youngster had no intention, or desire, to diminish her driven personality, the intense, burning hunger to succeed that underpinned every run she made, or pass completed. But she desperately needed mechanisms to be put in place that allowed her to let go of failure. For it to no longer eat away at her. For defeats – or even a simple stray ball – to not hurt so much, and for so long.

In essence, what was strived for was the ability to still set the bar exceptionally high, but now be accepting on the occasions when that bar was not reached.

A few sessions in, she was instructed to write down her negative thoughts, so they were put onto the page and out of her head. She did so, pouring out her emotions. Emptying the well.

Bonmati has consistently leaned into psychology, across an outstanding career that has seen her win World Cups, Champions Leagues, and so many individual honours it would require an entirely separate article to list them all.

She continues to write in a journal to this day.

The Power of Insight: Turning Fear To Focus

Megan Rapinoe is another Ballon d’Or winner who has repeatedly espoused the virtues and benefits of sports psychology, deploying techniques that first helped her attain enormous success, then better deal with its accompanying pressures.

Along her trophy-laden, well-publicised journey significant breakthroughs were achieved by the American superstar, not least the ability turn fear into focus, using a framework that relies on visualisation and mindfulness.

From Chicago to Lyon – with 203 appearances for the USWNT in between – counterstatements were created as matches approached. I trust my training. Pressure is a privilege. This reframing of her thought process ensured doubts could never get a look in, freeing her mind to be creative on the pitch.

Additionally, controllable goals were set prior to kick-off. Make sure you get a good first touch. Support your full-back out of possession. Effort meanwhile was always prioritised over outcome.

If such mental training is designed to enhance performance, another branch of the scientific discipline is tailored towards well-being and the managing of mental health.

Lionesses legend Fran Kirby has spoken candidly about her sustained fight to fend off debilitating depression, a struggle that began when her mum sadly passed when the 2018 Ballon d’Or nominee was a teenager.

“It’s so important to find someone that you can talk to,” she stated at a Women’s Sports Alliance Mental Health Discussion in 2021. “Quite often it’s someone who doesn’t know you all that well.”

“We have to be honest. We’re not robots, we’re human beings.”

Several other Lionesses have also spoken out about their own issues, with Chloe Kelly – a Ballon d’Or nominee last year – recently revealing that she suffers from severe anxiety while her international team-mate Millie Bright has shared her concerns about burnout.  

A Person-First Language

From quietening the ‘internal critic’ to helping develop mental toughness in the heat of battle, sports psychology has become a crucial ingredient of an athlete’s success. It can enhance performance, assist in managing stress and emotional control, and even speed up recovery times when injured.  

Moreover, it has become a fundamental component of the women’s game, not just half embraced – as is the case with some other pursuits- but fully incorporated.

And perhaps this is so – should we risk straying into stereotype – because of gender. In the women’s game the importance of talking, sharing, empathising, nurturing and bolstering is paramount in the construction of an individual, as well as a team.

As Fran Kirby attested, we’re human beings.

Chelsie Moult, a sports psychologist in training, further elaborates on this theme, explaining the immeasurable value in prioritising the person behind the problem.

“People can’t be fitted into a box so it depends on how a player comes to you. A player may drop you an email and request some psychology support and you can go into that session blind as to what awaits you.

So in that session I need to get to know that person and be able to colour in a picture as fully as I can to establish what is going on. We may not even talk a lot about what their particular problem is. It’s getting to know who they are as a person.

“My biggest attitude is that if you don’t know who that player is as a person, we can’t really help them as a player.”

“Sometimes unfortunately it’s the piece that gets missed. We need to fix this sporting problem, but it may not be a sporting issue. It could be something in their personal life and the two should never be viewed as separate entities.”