West Ham summer signing Leila Wandeler has warned that West Ham haven’t shown their full capacity yet ahead of a League Cup clash against Charlton Athletic.
Wandeler joined the club from Lyon at the end of August but already has high expectations of her teammates.
West Ham have suffered a difficult start to the season with three losses in the league.
The Hammers have already lost to Tottenham, Arsenal and Brighton. The consecutive losses have left the club bottom of the WSL with the worst goal difference in the league.
Despite the bad start, West Ham’s new forward believes there is more to come from her team.
“We haven’t shown our full capacity in the last games, so I think, even though it’s a cup game, it’s a really important one for us and our confidence,” she said. “I’m really excited, the girls are all excited and we’re going to face the game as it’s a very important one for our team.
Wandeler on film 🎞️ pic.twitter.com/Zvlg2aVxoe
— West Ham United Women (@westhamwomen) August 25, 2025
“She’s (Rehanne Skinner) showed us that in this league, you’re not allowed to just [go] halfway with effort. We have to be better than other teams. The mentality stuff is more important than tactics. The message is we have to fight more, work harder and want it more than other teams.”
Leila Wandeler setting the standard
Despite only being at the club for just over a month, Wandeler has already been praised by her manager for a quick start to life in England.
“I really appreciate the girls, I think something special that we have in this team is diversity.” Said the teenager. “All the girls are nice, of course, and I’m quite settled now. I know a bit more about the players and staff, so I’m really happy here.
“It can be scary [joining a new club] because you could think that some groups stay together and don’t match, but everybody’s friends with everybody, even if they don’t speak the same language.”
Wandeler is yet to start her first competitive game for West Ham but that is expected to change on Wednesday.
The exciting Swiss forward could be handed her dull debut against Charlton in the League Cup.
