It’s official—the January transfer window for the FAWSL is now closed. To say it’s been a busy window would be an understatement. To catch up on all the signings, be sure to check out our roundups from week one, week two, and week three. Below, we’ll be looking at all the last minute deals that happened before the transfer window closed.

 

MANCHESTER UNITED SIGNS MARIA THORISDOTTIR

United decided to leave their transfer business until late in the window by signing Maria Thorisdottir from Chelsea only earlier in the week. Thorisdottir had a contract with Chelsea until the summer of 2021, so it’s clear that the club wanted to cash in on the player on the assumption that she’d be leaving for free in a few months.

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— Manchester United Women (@ManUtdWomen) January 22, 2021

It’s rare to see top clubs sign players from their direct rivals. Chelsea and Manchester United are not just two of the top teams in the league—they’re currently tied atop the standings, with both of them in the hunt for a title.

Thorisdottir is a fantastic player, but with the squad that Chelsea had, she was not getting much playing time. This season, she’s only played in two league matches (and five in all competitions). Comparing that to her twenty-four appearances in her first season at Chelsea, it’s clear that she’s fallen down the depth chart.

Make no mistake though, Thorisdottir is still an impressive defender—she’s quick, aggressive, and is excellent with the ball at her feet, making it easy for her to play out from the back. She’s also coming to United with experience playing in the league (and championship experience as well, having won five trophies during her time at Chelsea), and a lot of international experience with Norway.

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— Manchester United Women (@ManUtdWomen) January 22, 2021

As a defender, Maria Thorisdottir primarily plays as a right-back in a back four, but she has the capabilities of also playing as right centre-back in a back three. Her flexibility will give Manchester United manager Casey Stoney options going forward.

 

WEST HAM UNITED SIGNS DAGNÝ BRYNJARSDÓTTIR

In London, meanwhile, West Ham opted to sign midfielder Dagný Brynjarsdóttir from Icelandic club Selfoss. Before she returned to her home country of Iceland, Brynjarsdóttir played for Bayern Munich in the Frauen-Bundesliga in 2015 and for the Portland Thorns in the NWSL from 2016-2019, winning the NWSL Championship in her second year at the club.

⚒ She's one of our own...

Welcome to West Ham United, @dagnybrynjars! ???????? ✍️ pic.twitter.com/xRW3fRrWqK

— West Ham United Women (@westhamwomen) January 28, 2021

The signing of Brynjarsdóttir likely stems from the club’s need to replace Cho So-hyun, who is now on loan at Tottenham Hotspur until the end of June. While Cho is only on loan at Tottenham for now, the Spurs have the option to make the loan permanent at the end of the season.

✍️ We are delighted to announce the signing of Cho So-hyun.

The South Korean captain will wear the number 11 shirt. #WelcomeCho ⚪ #COYS

— Tottenham Hotspur Women (@SpursWomen) January 29, 2021

Both Cho and Brynjarsdóttir are relatively similar players—both play quite deep as midfielders, and they are usually situated right in front of the defensive line. However, they aren’t pure defensive midfielders; instead, they actively act as playmakers for their sides.

West Ham fans should also know that Brynjarsdóttir has been a fan of the club since she was a young girl, and she is essentially one of their own. It’ll be interesting to see how Brynjarsdóttir adapts to her first spell in England, and where she can help take West Ham alongside their new coach, Olli Harder.

 

TRANSFERS HAVE MORE OPPORTUNITY THAN USUAL

With about four months left in the season, it remains to be seen how all of these signings will make an impact on their new teams. But with depth becoming an issue as clubs try to pack their schedules with make-up games, there will be opportunities for these players to step in and leave a mark on the ongoing title race.

Expansion team WNBA Golden State has officially brought on New York Liberty assistant GM Ohemaa Nyanin as general manager, the team announced in a Monday afternoon statement.

The move marks one of the first major personnel hires for the highly anticipated franchise, set to begin league play in 2025. Nyanin will oversee all basketball operations for the Bay Area addition, including building out the roster, shaping the team, and developing talent. 

Nyanin joins team president Jess Smith and senior vice president of marketing and communications Kimberly Veale in the WNBA Golden State front office.

"Ohemaa is the perfect fit to lead our WNBA basketball operations as we prepare for our inaugural season in 2025," Warriors co-executive chairman and CEO Joe Lacob said in the release. "As we moved through the GM hiring process, it became more apparent each day how impressive and well-versed Ohemaa is in all facets of the business, and as a person."

Nyanin was with the Liberty for more than five years, most recently serving as the team’s assistant general manager. Prior to that, she spent five years as the assistant director of the women’s national team at USA Basketball, helping to oversee team operations through gold medal wins at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio and the 2018 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup.

"I am truly honored to be chosen as the first general manager of WNBA Golden State," Nyanin said. "Throughout the interview process, it was clear that bringing a WNBA team to the Bay Area was meticulously thought out and those involved are motivated changemakers who will be proactive in growing the league. I look forward to joining this franchise and building a competitive basketball team that the fans deserve."

In a July 2023 profile published by The Next, Liberty assistant coach Roneeka Hodges described Nyanin as the New York team's “Ms. Make-it-Happen."

"She’s a jack of all trades," added Hodges, while Liberty GM Jonathan Kolb paid Nyanin a particularly prophetic compliment.

"She needs to be a general manager in this league," Kolb said. "Full stop, it needs to happen, and that’s her goal."

Chelsea began Sunday with their WSL title hopes a distant dream... before closing out the weekend right back in the thick of the title chase.

The Blues made a last-ditch effort to claim their fifth consecutive Barclays WSL title on Sunday with an 8-0 win over relegation-bound Bristol City. The victory came after a visiting Arsenal upset current table-toppers Manchester City at Joie Stadium, besting the home side 2-1 on back-to-back goals from Stina Blackstenius. With the win, the third-place Gunners re-opened the door for Chelsea to finish level at the top of the table on points.

Chelsea remains second in the standing, with 49 points to Manchester City's 52. But the barrage of goalscoring over the weekend could be enough to overtake City's potential tiebreak advantage in goal differential, leaving even coach Emma Hayes in awe.

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Chelsea holds a game in hand, but the Blues will need to win their May 15th match against Tottenham to give them a shot at the title. Should they take all three points, the title race will come down to the final weekend, when Chelsea squares off with Manchester United while City faces Aston Villa on Saturday, May 18th. 

Set to take over the USWNT in June, Hayes acknowledged the likelihood of finishing out her time at Chelsea with zero trophies, after losing in both the Conti Cup final and UWCL semifinal last month. But for now, her initial pessimism has subsided.

"Let me be clear, it's not f*****g over," Hayes said after coaching her last home match with Chelsea on Sunday. "There's no time for sentimentality, all work drinks are canceled. There's a title to be won.

"This group of players taught me something so special this week — that you never ever give up."

A WNBA League Pass error left fans scrambling to watch Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso make their preseason debuts for the Chicago Sky in Minneapolis on Friday. 

Despite indicating streaming availability via YouTube before tip-off, the evening’s game was later removed from the league’s platform. With no streaming options — along with no live TV broadcast — WNBA fan Alli Schneider began livestreaming the game on X from her seat inside Target Center. As many as 400,000 people logged on to watch the game live, and by Saturday, the resulting two-hour video had amassed over 2 million total views. 

In the lead-up to the preseason showdown, fans on both sides voiced frustrations over the WNBA's error. The league apologized in response, saying their app was "incorrectly showing that every preseason game (including CHI vs MIN) is available on League Pass."

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"The growth is happening so fast, it’s so accelerated. Business as usual isn’t going to work anymore, you’re going to get left behind," Reeve said of the blunder. "This is an example... We have to capitalize on those things."

Sky coach Teresa Weatherspoon echoed Reeve's sentiments, calling it "awesome" that so many fans followed along via Schneider's DIY livestream.

"We would love for us to be on and for everyone to take a look, especially for this team, you have a great group of young women who are exciting to watch play," said Weatherspoon. "Tonight we had an opportunity to kind of get a feel for where we are and what we need to do. It’s awesome to know that a lot of people really tuned in."

On the court, Reese had a near double-double in her first professional outing, notching 13 points and nine rebounds in 24 minutes. A viral pass inside to set up fellow rookie Cardoso's bucket served as the icing on the cake. The Sky ultimately lost to the Lynx 92-81, despite Minnesota newcomer Alissa Pili netting just two points and one rebound in 13 minutes of playing time.

Due to overwhelming fan demand, the WNBA confirmed today that it will indeed stream the Sky's next preseason game against the New York Liberty on League Pass. The two teams square off on Tuesday, May 7th at 8 PM ET.

The Caitlin Clark WNBA era has officially begun, with the star-studded rookie making her preseason debut with the Indiana Fever on Friday. 

Clark scored a team-leading 21 points — including five threes — and recorded a game-high 16 points at the half. But it was Arike Ogunbowale who got the last word for Dallas, knocking down a splashy buzzer-beating three-pointer in front of the sold-out crowd to deliver the Wings the 79-76 win.

"I think there's gonna be a lot to go back and look at and learn from, because a lot of it is kind of different from college," Clark said shortly after the Fever's loss. "Just from, you know, a technique standpoint or you know, scheme standpoint, and what we do is not always always going to be the same. So I think those are the biggest things, but I think overall, I just played really hard and that's always something to be proud of."

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For Clark, the biggest transition challenges lie in WNBA's physicality and talent levels. 

"No matter who steps into the game, you can never really relax, because that’s how competitive the league is," she added.

Fever coach Christie Sides also commented on's Clark on-court adjustment in her postgame remarks. Noting that the team will have to take steps to protect their star as she navigates the W's upgraded athleticism, Sides shared that at one point in the game, Clark was "completely gassed" and called for a sub. 

"We have to do better, we can't let her get to that point," Sides said. "She just won't be able to last and the way people are guarding her — I mean, she's seeing a double team, she's seeing hard hedges, they're being real physical with her. That's how it's going to be for her. And so we've got to make sure we're doing what we can to protect her so she's able to go into fourth at the same level she is in the first."

Clark wasn't the only rookie making their pro debut in Dallas that night. Ohio State ace Jacy Sheldon racked up six points and one rebound in her 13 minutes on the court (plus an unfortunate viral moment), but the breakout performance of the night went to Jaelyn Brown, a Cal grad who went undrafted in 2020 and spent the last few years playing overseas. On Friday, she carried the Wings to the finish line with 21 points in 29 minutes on 7-of-15 shooting.

After the game, Brown attested that she's "ready to compete" in an atmosphere that she "belongs in."

"I just try and treat it as any other game," she continued. "The crowd was amazing, it’s a little different from overseas, a little bit, but it’s the same game. I just [came] out there with a calm composure and did what I can do."