Liverpool Ladies Lose Key Players

Everything that needs to be said about this summer’s transfer window has been said. We’ve done better than we thought we’d do a week ago, but at the end of the day, we definitely haven’t done as well as we all hoped we would. There are signings that have us all excited, but there also needs to be an honest conversation about whether we should have had a van Dijk alternative lined up from the beginning. Spoiler: we should’ve.

If you’re already maudlin about how this season could’ve gone, you should definitely stop reading right now. Because Liverpool Ladies haven’t come out of this transfer window particularly well, either.

Shanice van de Sanden, easily one of the stand out performers in this summer’s Euro, has agreed to a move to Olympique Lyonnais Feminin, and Katie Zelem, one of the key members of Liverpool’s Super League winning team in 2013 and 2014, has joined Juventus Women.

"I have loved my time at Liverpool Ladies and feel I have taken my game to the next level since moving here in 2016,” van de Sanden told the club’s official website. “I have made friends for life and will take away some fantastic memories.”

It’s not hard to see why van de Sanden agreed to the move, though. Olympique Lyonnais Feminin hold the current Champions League title and offer an irresistible opportunity to grow her game in France.

Liverpool Ladies have until September 14 to finalise any last transfers before they kick off their season on September 22 with a Merseyside Derby.