Chelsea Women have reset the women’s football transfer market with the big-money transfers of Naomi Girma, Keira Walsh, and Femke Liefting
If there was ever an example of a club not resting on its laurels and only celebrating past successes, Chelsea Women would be among the best. Currently sitting on top of the WSL table with a 7-point lead, the Blues spent big in the transfer market to bolster the squad and make a run at the elusive WSL and Women’s Champions League double. Let’s meet the new signings starting with the world record breaker!
Naomi Girma - San Diego Wave - $1.1million (£890k)
Chelsea Women reset the women’s football transfer market with the addition of Naomi Girma from the San Diego Wave for a world record $1.1million. The previous mark was $787,600, set by new NWSL expansion team Bay FC with their signing of Rachel Kundananji from Real Madrid Femenino.
A player that many consider to be the best centerback in the world, Girma has lit up the soccer world since graduating from Stanford and becoming the first overall pick in the 2022 NWSL Draft. She has since won a NWSL Shield and the NWSL Challenge Cup with the Wave and was a mainstay in the league’s best XI since joining the club.
With the USWNT, Girma has established herself as a fixture in the starting XI and already has 44 caps for the US at just 24-years-old. She already has an Olympic gold medal, a CONCACAF Womens Championship title, and a CONCACAF Women’s Gold Cup title in her trophy cabinet.
She is a composed and intelligent centerback that brings fiery leadership to the pitch and should make an immediate impact for the Blues when she makes her official debut. This is a statement signing for a club that has won the WSL five years in a row but is still chasing that elusive Champions League title. Girma’s big game experience and world class talent should help push the Blues that much further towards their goal.