England international joins West Ham and Cascarino signs for London City – WSL transfer round-up | OneFootball

West Ham have signed Katie Zelem on loan from London City Lionesses, where she joined last summer after moving from Angel City.

The midfielder’s move to east London reunites her with new West Ham coach Rita Guarino, with whom she won the 2017/18 Serie A title at Juventus.

Zelem has made 143 Women’s Super League appearances and earned 12 senior England caps, the most recent of which came in 2023.

Guarino said: “Katie knows what it takes to compete at the highest level which will add huge value to this group of players. She sets and drives standards on and off the pitch, and will help us to perform to the standards that we want to be at for the remainder of the season.”

Meanwhile, Colombian forward Manuela Pavi has left West Ham to join Mexican club Toluca, having been with the Hammers since 2024.

Elsewhere, Leicester City have further bolstered their squad with the signing of Swiss forward Alisha Lehmann, the most followed female footballer in the world, with 16 million Instagram followers. This is their fifth signing of a busy window, which includes the signings of WSL stalwarts Ashleigh Neville and Rachel Williams.

London City Lionesses have also completed a major signing, bringing in France international Delphine Cascarino on a free transfer from San Diego Wave of the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).

Cascarino activated a January release clause allowing a return to Europe by mutual consent, immediately terminating her contract at San Diego.

The forward spent 15 years at Lyon across youth and senior levels, making her a player well known to Michele Kang, the owner of both Lyon and London City.

It has been a busy week for Liverpool, who have signed Scotland international Martha Thomas on loan from Tottenham Hotspur. Thomas scored on her debut for the Reds in the FA Cup.

Liverpool also paid a club-record fee to sign experienced Republic of Ireland international Denise O’Sullivan from North Carolina Courage and added Aurelie Csillag from Freiburg, with the midfielder stating: “I didn’t have any doubts, the WSL was always a dream.”