Manchester United and Manchester City agree deal to swap Clinton and Park | OneFootball

Manchester City and Manchester United have agreed a deal for the England midfielders Grace Clinton and Jess Park to swap clubs, in a transfer that it is understood would essentially mean City buying Clinton for an undisclosed sum plus Park.

Both players have only one year remaining on their contracts and it is believed City had multiple bids to sign Clinton rejected by their local rivals, before United proposed the idea of bringing Park in the other direction as part of the deal.

The Guardian first revealed that Marc Skinner’s side had been exploring bringing Park to United, and the 23-year-old is understood to have agreed personal terms and undergone a medical on Wednesday. For Clinton, personal terms are still to be finalised but she is scheduled to have a medical on Thursday.

Both players were part of the Lionesses squad that won Euro 2025 in Switzerland this summer. Clinton, who has 16 senior England caps, was likely to leave United for free next summer if this move could not be agreed but the club have been keen to learn lessons from the past – the England stars Alessia Russo and Mary Earps left on free transfers in 2023 and 2024 respectively – and do a deal that appears to please all parties.

Park has been with City for eight years, has 20 England caps and has scored three international goals, including the winner against the world champions, Spain, in a Nations League fixture at Wembley in February.

The Women’s Super League transfer window closes at 11pm on Thursday and a large number of deals are being worked on, including several high‑profile and potentially big-money moves.

London City Lionesses are understood to be close to signing the Spain youth international Lucía Corrales from Barcelona, after meeting her release clause of about €500,000 (£435,000). If personal terms are agreed, that would make her the fourth-most expensive signing in WSL history and a record sale for a Spanish player.

The 19-year-old, who spent last season on loan at Sevilla, scored the winning goal in the semi-final of the 2022 Under-17 World Cup against Germany, with Spain going on to win the final. She was one of the first female footballers to live at Barcelona’s La Masia training base and the club released a statement on Monday confirming that Corrales’s buyout clause had been met by an unnamed club.

Leicester are hoping to sign the Australia midfielder Emily van Egmond from Birmingham. Leicester are without a manager but multiple sources have confirmed that the former West Ham assistant coach Rick Passmoor has taken interim charge.

Leicester have sold the one‑cap England midfielder Ruby Mace to Everton for what is understood to be the highest fee the club have received. The defensive midfielder, who had one year left on her contract, had asked to leave. She posted a message of thanks to Leicester on Instagram, saying: “You picked me up when I was at my lowest and reminded me why I love football. Leicester will always hold a special place in my heart.”

The USA winger Alyssa Thompson is understood to have said goodbye to her Angel City teammates and is determined to join Chelsea before the Thursday deadline, but the clubs are still trying to thrash out a deal. Angel City and the NWSL are understood to be reluctant for such a key player to leave, but the player and Chelsea hope a deal can be done.

The Guardian revealed in August that Chelsea had made a formal approach to sign the 20-year-old.

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