FootyPop: Keira Walsh Makes Move To Chelsea
In this week’s women’s soccer news, Keira Walsh was transferred to Chelsea; the NWSL officially announced Denver as the next expansion team; two USWNT players are on the move; and more!
High of the Week
Chelsea’s massive transfer window continued when they secured the move of Keira Walsh. Chelsea currently sits atop the Women’s Super League standings with an undefeated record of 12 wins and just one draw. The already very talented Blues team got even richer with the signing of Naomi Girma last week and then they added one of the best midfielders in Walsh. Chelsea signed Walsh to a 4 ½ year deal with a transfer worth over $500,000.
The midfielder spent the last three seasons with Barcelona, where she helped them win back-to-back UEFA Women’s Champions League titles. Before joining Barcelona, the England native spent eight years with Manchester City. The rumor going around the women’s soccer world was that Chelsea was looking for a defensive midfielder, and they got that and then some with the addition of Walsh.
Walsh debuted for Chelsea in their 1-0 win over Aston Villa.
Keira Walsh plays for Chelsea! ✍️ pic.twitter.com/imBV5adKkm
— Chelsea FC Women (@ChelseaFCW) January 31, 2025
Low of the Week
Bayern Munich announced this week that Georgia Stanway suffered a significant knee injury which is a really tough blow. Stanway injured her LCL and has undergone surgery but she’ll be out for quite some time. It’s a tough injury for Stanway and a huge blow for Bayern Munich as well as England with the UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 taking place in July. Stanway has played in 17 matches for Bayern this season and scored five goals and tallied four assists in all competitions.
Georgia #Stanway wurde nach einer Außenbandverletzung im Training erfolgreich operiert und wird den FC Bayern Frauen mehrere Monate fehlen.
Gute Besserung, Georgia! ❤️🩹#FCBayern pic.twitter.com/4l4QV3bb5R
— FC Bayern Frauen (@FCBfrauen) January 30, 2025
News of the Week
Denver has officially joined the NWSL, they announced in a press conference with NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman. The news had already been broken by news outlets but now it’s official. Denver will become the 16th team in the league and will begin play in 2026 alongside the Boston expansion time. Rob Cohen is the team’s controlling owner with others involved in the ownership group. During the press conference, they also announced that the club is working to finalize plans to build a dedicated stadium and training facility. Based on their branding so far it looks like their primary color will be green.
Denver is a big hub for women’s soccer and Colorado is the home state of USWNT players like Lindsey Horan, Mallory Swanson, and Sophia Smith.
The beginning of a new era for Denver sports. 💚 pic.twitter.com/UR1k5rh1Wg
— Denver NWSL (@denver_nwsl) January 30, 2025
Transfer of the Week
Another USWNT member is on the move to England this transfer window with Jenna Nighswonger heading to Arsenal. Nighswonger spent her first two professional seasons with NJ/NY Gotham FC. As a rookie, she played a huge role for Gotham and helped them win the 2023 NWSL Championships. The defender is only 24 so the move makes a lot of sense for her career and she’ll be a great addition for Arsenal at left-back. For Gotham, it’s another blow for a team that has lost a few key players this offseason.
New threads ✅ pic.twitter.com/0XKToFhe7A
— Arsenal Women (@ArsenalWFC) January 30, 2025
Signing of the Week
When Crystal Dunn signed with Gotham many believed that she would retire with the club and get to finish her career in front of her home crowd. That wasn’t the case with the club and Dunn deciding to part ways after just one season. Dunn’s farewell post to NJ/NY and Gotham alluded to the fact that she wanted to stay with the club but they couldn’t come to an agreement. What went down between the two parties is a mystery but Dunn didn’t appear in the last seven games of the 2024 season for Gotham.
The defender signed with Paris St. Germain on a free transfer through 2027. She joins USWNT teammate Korbin Albert in France.
🆕✍️#WelcomeCrystal ❤️💙
— PSG Féminines (@PSG_Feminines) January 31, 2025
Team of the Week
Levante picked up a massive win over Barcelona this weekend. They handed first-place Barcelona their first league loss of the season. Levante has not had a great season and is currently in 15th place with a 3-4-10 record. Levante scored two goals in the second half and was able to see the lead to the end and earn all three points 2-1. Their win ended Barcelona’s 46-game unbeaten streak in league play.
✨ A GOAL CLOSER TO HEAVEN
Ivonne Chacón scores a second for Levante against Barcelona in stoppage-time!
Watch live for free on DAZN ▶️ https://t.co/dIfKpURfZv#LigaF pic.twitter.com/fAlWwrjpkV
— DAZN Women’s Football (@DAZNWFootball) February 1, 2025
Assist of the Week
Arsenal against Manchester City was a terrific match with tons of action. Beth Mead received a long cross over the top and was able to go down the side and send a perfectly placed ball into the box for Stina Blackstenius to tap in. That goal was the game-winner in a 4-3 match.
CUE THE CHAOS!!!! STINA BLACKSTENIUS GIVES ARSENAL THEIR THIRD LEAD OF THE GAME 🥵
🎥 @RookieForLyfe pic.twitter.com/iv63UPPMw3
— The Women’s Game (@WomensGameMIB) February 2, 2025
Fav Social Media Post
The NWSL social team made quick work with the Grammy’s meme of Beyoncé and reminded us that we’re almost to the start of the 2025 NWSL season!
Us when we remember the NWSL returns in just 40 days 😯 pic.twitter.com/jTLPant3WC
— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) February 3, 2025
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