Chelsea Women: Rising defensive talent heads to Championship on loan

Chelsea Women's loan army just added another member. A week after midfielder Ashanti Akpan was announced as a new Birmingham City FC player for the upcoming campaign, the West Londoners confirmed another loan move for an Academy talent to the same league. 19-year-old Greta Humphries, who just signed her first professional contract last month, will spend the entire 2024/25 season with Lauren Smith’s Bristol City side of the Barclays Women's Championship.

Humphries is a physical center back who stands at 1.78 meters or 5 foot 10 inches tall. She has spent the last two years at the Academy level in West London after joining in the summer of 2022 from rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

She'll be the third player in the last four seasons to head off to southwest England on loan, joining young attacker Aggie Beever-Jones and defender Brooke Aspin.

"The club is really ambitious, the players are lovely from meeting them this week," said Humphries. "I’m so excited to get started and I think it’s going to be a really exciting journey. I want us to be as competitive as possible in the championship and get as much experience as possible in women’s football.”

BCFC has seen some significant changes to their defensive lineup in recent days. The Championship club not only brought in young Academy prospect Humphries to bolster their backline but also added experienced Watford defender Harley Bennett. This means she'll not only have the opportunity to learn from Smith and the coaching staff but also from a veteran defender who has been a captain in this league for multiple seasons in the past.

Bristol bid farewell to two defensive assets, with both Megan Connolly and Satara Murray departing the club within the last week.

The former Tottenham player was one of just four players to not have a squad number when they were announced. It seemed like a loan was the most ideal scenario for someone who just needs minutes competing at the senior level. We'd expect the club to announce the decisions made for the other three individuals without a number — Lexi Potter, Aspin, and Jorja Fox — in the coming weeks or even days.

Bristol City is an ideal landing spot for Humphries as she hopes to collect necessary senior level minutes

The Robins, who were just recently relegated from the Women's Super League following a campaign in which they managed to tally just six points in 22 matches, begin their quest back to the top flight on September 8 away at Southampton.

Speaking on her goals for the upcoming season, Humphries said: "Promotion back to the WSL would be fantastic. That is what myself and all the girls are wanting to achieve, the coaches as well. I think to be competitive in the Championship and just get as much experience as possible in women's football."

Subscribe to the new Barclays WC YouTube channel to watch and keep up with Humphries and Akpan in England's competitive second tier.