Jamaica defender Chantelle Swaby says it is like “a whole new club” at Leicester City this season.
Swaby, 26, joined the Foxes in July as they began to embark on a new era under French manager Amandine Miquel.
With the Women’s Super League season kicking off this weekend, Swaby hopes Leicester can prove to be “dark horses” and return to winning ways.
This has been a turbulent year for the club after former manager Willie Kirk was sacked after an investigation into an allegation he had a relationship with a player.
Leicester said the code of conduct which they found Kirk to have breached was “established and implemented” before the 2023-24 season.
The team ended last season with interim bosses Jennifer Foster and Stephen Kirby in charge.
An eight-game winless run made for a disappointing finish, despite Leicester reaching the Women’s FA Cup semi-finals.
But Swaby is “excited” to see what the team can do this season with a new manager and new players.
“It definitely shows we’re not the same club that we might have been last year,” said Swaby.
“A lot of times when you see there’s a management change, everything goes down the drain, but I think we’ve started off on the front foot in pre-season.
“I think things are looking really good and I’m excited. The atmosphere is really good. There’s a bunch of different characters within the team.”