Niamh Charles joins Women’s Super League champions Man City from rivals Chelsea | OneFootball

Manchester City have announced that full-back Niamh Charles will be joining their title-winning defence after a trophy laden spell at Chelsea.

The 26-year-old joined the west London outfit in 2020 from her childhood club Liverpool. Despite having one year left on her current contract, which she signed in January 2024, the defender saw limited minutes last season amid injury troubles.

She suffered an ankle injury which sidelined her for long periods of the 2025/26 season. As a result, she featured in just 11 league matches last term. However, a strong end to the season saw Charles start Chelsea’s last three league games as she helped the side clinch third place and set up Champions League qualifiers.

Charles also played the full 120 minutes against her new club, Man City, during the semi-final of the Adobe Women’s FA Cup. Coming back from a two-goal deficit, City booked their place at Wembley where they stunned Brighton to win their first FA Cup since 2021.

The signing of Charles highlights City’s ambition to replicate their first league title in 10 years, and shows competitors that they won’t sit back and allow them to catch up. Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw also made a shock U-turn amid interest from Chelsea to sign a lucrative new deal, keeping her at the club until 2030.

For Charles, the new challenge makes sense. As mentioned above, she has seen limited minutes under Sonia Bompastor’s leadership, and with Leila Ouahabi departing City, the left-back position is up for grabs.

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What position is Niamh Charles?

Originally arriving as a winger, Emma Hayes turned the then 21-year-old into an established full-back who could also be deployed higher up in a wing-back position.

While former Blue Maren Mjelde suffered a long-term injury, Hayes seized the opportunity and deployed Charles in the back-line. The youngster took her chance and from then on, it was her shirt to lose.

During her time in the capital, the Lioness has experienced plenty of success. The 26-year-old will leave London with almost every available trophy in her cabinet. She won five WSL titles during her tenure, as well as four FA Cups and three League Cups, alongside the Community Shield.

In just her first season at the club, she won the treble and was the youngest starter in the UEFA Women’s Champions League final, where Chelsea fell short against FC Barcelona.

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The full-back continued to impress and was a regular starter in the Chelsea side that won four consecutive league titles in the 2023/24 season. It was here that she made the cut into the WSL team of the year.

Following Hayes’ departure, Charles was ready to impress under new management. However, an untimely dislocated shoulder in pre-season delayed her first competitive appearance under Bompastor to December 2024. She returned during the second half of the season as the Blues clinched an undefeated domestic treble.

However, after limited minutes in the most recent campaign, the defender believes it is time for a new challenge, and who better to join that the defending Champions?

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