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 just one year remaining on their contracts and it is believed Manchester City initially had an approach to sign Clinton rejected by their local rivals in August, before Manchester 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 undergo 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 Manchester United for free next summer if this move could not be agreed but United have been keen to learn lessons from the past – the England stars Alessia Russo and Mary Earps both left the club on free transfers – 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 WSL transfer window closes at 11pm BST 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 LucĂa Corrales from Barcelona, after meeting her release clause of about €500,000 (ÂŁ435,000). 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 managerless but multiple sources have confirmed that the former West Ham assistant coach Rick Passmoor has taken interim charge.
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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 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 Thursday’s 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.
Meanwhile, the Arsenal and England youth international defender Cecily Wellesley-Smith is also understood to be close to finalising a loan move to fellow WSL club Leicester City. The 18-year-old underwent a medical on Wednesday.