KEIRA WALSH declared she is ready to fight for Chelsea’s badge after confirming her switch from Barcelona.
The England midfielder has joined the WSL leaders on a four-and-a-half-year deal, for a fee thought to be around £400,000.
GettyWalsh will Chelsea’s number 30 shirt following her permanent transfer from Barcelona[/caption]
The Blues midfielder has become the second England star to join the club from Barcelona following Lucy Bronze’s move in July last year
APWalsh, who won eight trophies with Barcelona, sees her move to Chelsea as a “good fit” for her in terms of her ambitions[/caption]
In doing so she sealed one of the biggest moves in the January transfer window with Chelsea boosting their squad to aid their quadruple trophy chase.
Her arrival comes before the Blues’ trip to Aston Villa on Sunday with the team aiming to extend their WSL unbeaten run to 13 games this term.
Of her move Walsh, who made 64 Barcelona appearances, said: “It’s unbelievable. I’m very happy to be here and very excited to get started.
“You look at the history of the trophies Chelsea have won and I’m an ambitious player and person, so for me, it is a good fit.
“Speaking to Paul Green (Chelsea’s head of women’s football), Sonia and Camille (Chelsea assistant manager), I just got such a good feeling from them.
“It has been really positive. I want to play for this club and fight for the badge.”
Walsh, who began her senior club career at Blackburn at 16, has spent the past two-and-half-years playing for Barcelona with whom she won eight trophies including two top-flight titles.
Her transfer has seen the Blues strengthen their midfield options with the team hoping to go unbeaten in the top-flight this season.
She is also the second England star to join the team from Spain’s title holders following Lucy Bronze’s transfer last July.
Before her Chelsea switch and Barcelona stint, Walsh spent eight years at Manchester City, winning eight trophies including one WSL title.
Her move to Spain came two months after she played an instrumental role in England’s European Championship triumph in July 2022.
The midfielder provided an assist for Ella Toone’s goal in a 2-1 defeat of Germany at Wembley.
And during her time with Barca the 80-capped Lioness helped them win two Champions League trophies in 2023 and last year.
In her first season at the helm Sonia Bompastor hopes to guide the London outfit to a Champions League tournament triumph.
GettyToday Chelsea also announced the signing of goalkeeper Femke Liefting who won the Golden Glove at last year’s Under-20s Women’s World Cup[/caption]
Europe’s biggest club prize is the one major trophy the Blues are yet to win.
Walsh’s arrival comes five days after Chelsea’s swoop for USA international Naomi Girma, 24, the club forking out US$1.1million to sign the ex-San Diego Wave defender.
And yesterday they also strengthened their goalkeeper ranks with 20-year-old Femke Liefting joining from Dutch club AZ Alkmaar.
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