Our long-serving central defender joined the Blues from Doncaster Belles back in 2014, where she had worked with general manager Paul Green. The 30-year-old takes on the captaincy after the departure of former skipper Magdalena Eriksson at the end of last season.

Bright has a made 245 appearances for the Blues and is approaching nine years with the club. She has amassed 15 trophies including six Women’s Super League titles, five FA Cups, two League Cups, the Community Shield and the Spring Series.

Having earned the captaincy in an official capacity, Bright pays tribute to the inspirational leaders who have not only gone before, but have helped shape her time at Chelsea, where leading by example has become engrained in her philosophy.

‘I’ve led the girls out quite a lot over the years that I’ve been here. I’ve also had the honour of being vice to some top legends and amazing people I’ve learned a lot from.

'I learned a lot from Kaz (Carney), Katie (Chapman), Mags (Eriksson) and other leaders we’ve had within the team. Now, it’s a massive honour to have the title and to be able to call yourself club captain is huge.

‘I’ve always been me no matter what. My role doesn’t change, I don’t change and I’ve always taken pride in whether I have the armband or not, I will always lead by example.

'I will always be a leader within the team because that’s just who I am and what I demand from the team will never change. It’s the culture at Chelsea, everyone is a leader and has responsibility.’

Looking all the way back to her first year as a Blue, Bright took the opportunity to reflect on her first impressions of the club she now calls home, and how she was intent on embracing everything about her new surroundings.

‘The first year was a real taste for what the club represented. I knew I was coming to a huge club worldwide that competed for trophies, had that winning mentality, had big players, big names and obviously brilliant coaching staff.

'Straight away I felt really welcome, but immediately it was about winning. It was about performing and playing to the highest level.

‘I was a sponge in that first year, just soaking everything up and learning from the players around me like Katie Chapman. She took me under her wing, looked out for me as a player and a friend and showed me the ropes.’

With a ball at her feet, any football pitch feels like home to our new skipper. A home girl at heart, Bright describes the difficulties of moving away from her family and everything she knew to pursue this new chapter in her career.

‘On the pitch, I settled pretty quickly because I felt so at home. I missed home a lot and probably struggled with that side of it more than anything and being so far away from my family.

'I’m a home girl and everyone knows that, so being three hours away was the hardest thing. Coming into a professional environment, you’re training every day, there are not many days off, you have internationals.

‘Off the pitch, it took me over a year to feel fully comfortable and not needing to go home. On the pitch, I felt at home straight away. I had a lot to learn. Emma told me to stand still and stop running around - read the game better! I was so eager and energetic that I was here, there and everywhere. On the pitch, I was thriving in the environment I was in.’

A conversation with manager Emma Hayes proved the catalyst for Bright to develop into the player she has become. An appreciation and understanding of her role was the springboard she needed to strive to become the best version of herself.

‘I dread to look at the clips from my first year here! My overall game is completely different now. In my early years at Chelsea, still playing midfield and centre-back, the biggest thing was sitting down with Emma and saying, ‘what position is going to make me the best in the world,’ because that’s what I want to be.

‘We decided centre-back was that role and from there, whatever job I need to do for the team I will always do, but that was the role we all agreed on. I started to push on and I knew what my position was, knew what was expected of me and from there just kept climbing.’

Leadership qualities have always been evident in Bright as both a player and a person. She explains when she started to feel like a leader, but believes she has always set high standards both personally and collectively, while keeping her feet firmly on the ground.

‘Once I got the hang of being here and learning the game, learning the Chelsea way. As a player I’m very vocal anyway, no matter the environment or the team that I’m in. I will always be vocal with communication or demanding standards, that is just my mentality. From the off, I was demanding the standards of everyone there and myself as well.

‘I take a lot of pride in turning up every single day and giving 100 per cent. I’ve always been me and that’s something I am proud of. I’ve never changed who I am no matter how many times I’ve played for Chelsea, how many times I’ve led the girls out, or how long I’ve been here. I’ve always been the same person and that’s something I’m really proud of.’