Our captain’s remarkable City numbers | OneFootball

A look at why Alex Greenwood is considered one of the finest defenders in world football.

Our captain has signed a contract extension with City to the summer of 2027, which will bring about seven years of stellar service at the Club.

Greenwood had already achieved a phenomenal amount in the game before that move to the Joie Stadium but, since arriving in Manchester back in 2020, she’s gone on to become one of the Barclays Women’s Super League’s most influential centre-halves.

Below is a quick rundown of how she’s made that happen…

PFA Team of the Year

For many players, recognition in the PFA awards – voted for by their fellow professionals – is among the most highly sought-after individual accolades in the English game.

And since Greenwood moved to City, she’s regularly been voted into the WSL’s Team of the Year.

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She’s been included three times in her five full seasons at City, with only team-mates Lauren Hemp and Yui Hasegawa, as well as Arsenal’s Leah Williamson and Chelsea’s Sam Kerr able to match that tally over the same time span.

Having also made the cut in 2016 while at Notts County, Alex has four PFA Team of the Year inclusions to her name - a feat only former Chelsea forward Ji So-yun can better.

Defensive Diligence

Greenwood unsurprisingly sits at the top of many defensive charts across her five years of WSL football so far at City.

Indeed, she ranks first for clearances, headed clearances, blocks and interceptions among City players since joining the Club in 2020/21.

Her 157 interceptions in just 99 appearances is also in the top five among WSL defenders, with only Ashleigh Neville, Grace Fisk, Millie Bright and Sophie Howard ahead of our captain.

On the ball

A cultured and composed centre-half, Alex’s possession-based stats are nothing short of remarkable while at City.

Across the whole WSL since 2020/21, the England international has attempted (8,556) and completed (7,465) the most passes, equating to an accuracy of 87.3%.

She’s also recorded the most total ball carries of five or more metres (2,068) and the largest total carry distance (21,631 metres) in the entire English top flight.

Attacking third

But Greenwood is also influencing matches further up the pitch, such is her impact on City’s style of play over the past five years.

At City, she ranks fifth for assists (12) and third for total chances created (133) and is also high up the charts among fellow WSL defenders.

Only Katie McCabe (28) and Niamh Charles (13) have more assists to their name since 2020/21, while Greenwood is also third for goal contributions (17) among defenders in that time.

Our captain has also created an astonishing 133 chances, with 63 of those coming from set plays.

The only player able to better that tally among WSL defenders is once again McCabe, though the Arsenal full-back has played in numerous positions during her time with the Gunners.