While the transfers into the senior team may have come to a close with the Hannah Hampton signing, the Chelsea Women continue to add to next season’s loan army.
Not only is it about talent that can make an impact come September, but the Blues have also done a sensational job the last two summers adding and developing the players that could make up the team in the future. Last July, the west London outfit confirmed the signing of a promising young attacker, Lucy Watson. A year later, arguably one of the most talented U-20 defenders in England put pen to paper on a contract with the club.
Emma Hayes could not sign Bristol City center back Brooke Aspin until she turned 18 on July 1. That time has passed. On Thursday afternoon, the club made if official. The Bristol City academy graduate Aspin has agreed to a four-year contract with the four-time defending Women’s Super League champions. The 18-year-old will spend her 2023-2024 campaign back with the Robins, the club she joined in 2014, and the one she helped lead to promotion from the English Championship last season.
One of the best parts about this deal for Chelsea Women is the fact that they did not have to pay anything. According to City’s statement, no compensation was given to the Robins. Similar to the way English star Lauren Hemp moved from Bristol to Manchester City in 2018, and Evie Rabjohn to Manchester United back in May, the rules in the women’s game in England allow for controversial moves like these to happen.
The rule was changed by the FA last month where teams in the WSL will receive £5,000 for every year the individual spent in the club’s academy. As The Mirror’s women’s football writer, Megan Feringa explained, “because the new rules have been implemented this summer and clubs have only been recognized under the PGA system this year, the FA’s newest rules will not be backdated.”
A dream come true to be a Blue@ 💙
— Brooke Aspin (@brookeaspin5) July 7, 2023
A special moment for me to sign for @ChelseaFCW and something I have dreamed of since I was a little girl!
Thanks to my family for everything they have sacrificed, and thanks to my agent @itsandyburton for the support behind the scenes!#CFC pic.twitter.com/L46WLUq5bG
At 29, Millie Bright is going to produce at this kind of level forever. Aspin is a player that both Hayes and Paul Green have reported to be have been looking at for three years now. In 2021-2022, Aspin jumped from academy football to the Championship seamlessly, appearing in 26 matches for City across all competitions. In the process, she guided her side to seven clean sheets in the league while playing distributor twice in league play.
At 1.70 meters (five-foot seven inches), Aspin is taller than senior center back Jess Carter, and the same height at Kadeisha Buchanan. She is fearless in the air on both ends of the pitch, and has the tendency to make darting runs into the attacking third. Similar to Bright, if you don’t mark her in the penalty box, she is going to punish the opposition. In addition, Aspin has proven she is a prolific passer out of the back, often sparking the attack from the backline. The fact that she is just 18 is incomprehensible. One season in the English top-flight back at a club she knows well will rightly challenge her against quality opposition.
Brooke Aspin has had a remarkable journey en route to joining Chelsea Football Club
In the beginning of last season, the defender experienced a health scare. Aspin battled sepsis following a bone infection, an extremely serious condition where the body produces an unusual response to an infection. Due to that, the young defender missed six months of football, spending over three weeks in the hospital in the beginning of the season before returning to the pitch in March as a substitute in a 3-0 triumph over Durham.
Becky Belbin, Bristol’s lead physio expressed the fact that she was in top physical condition before this shocking illness came into the picture. Her spirit never died through the hardship. In the final match of this past campaign, Aspin netted a header in the 80′ against Charlton Athletic in the club’s final home match to more than confirm the Robins’ promotion.
To be able not only make it back onto the pitch, but sign her first professional contract with the west Londoners having gone through what she has experienced this past year is a testament to her mental fortitude. Aspin to date is going to be the third CFCW loanee next season for the Blues including Maika Hamano. Given the age of many of Hayes’ players, there are going to be a lot of decisions to be made by the club in the coming months.