Katie McCabe has turned her attention to international duty, but behind the scenes her club future is on the verge of being decided. Chelsea were quick to make a move for the Ireland captain after she turned down a last-gasp contract renewal at Arsenal. And they now look set to sign the 30-year-old on a free transfer, fending off competition from Women’s Super League rivals Manchester City. Landing such an experienced and talented player without having to fork over a fee represents a smart piece
of business by the Stamford Bridge side. And McCabe ’s international manager reckons her next club is getting one of the best players in the world – someone she recently said would be in the Ballon d’Or conversation if she was English. “Katie would be a good fit for any team in the world,” said Ireland boss Carla Ward, speaking in Cork where she is preparing her players for their final two World Cup qualifiers. Ireland host the Netherlands at Páirc Uí Chaoimh on Friday,
and then it’s away to France next Tuesday. Two wins, as unlikely as that might be given the quality of opposition, would send Ireland to the World Cup as automatic qualifiers, while they have all but booked a favourable play-off path. So that’s where McCabe’s head is at right now, while others hammer out the details of a move from one WSL giant to another. Ward continued: “She’s a top top player. I’ve said it a lot. She’s the best left back in the world
and no question about it. “Last year she was in every single WSL team of the year no matter where you looked. Katie would be a good fit for anybody and any team will be lucky to have her.” McCabe will be a key figure on Friday against the Netherlands – particularly in the absence of suspended duo Denise O’Sullivan and Emily Murphy, who have excelled during the campaign so far. “There’s a few things against the Netherlands. We were beaten 2-1 (in the away
game), but there were a lot of things we weren’t particularly happy with, areas we needed to improve,” said Ward. “That’s the nature of the business, you want to be better all the time. So we’ve addressed that, we’ve looked at it. “Denise and Muph are huge losses. They’ve been unbelievable this campaign. Naturally you have to replace that. But what I would say is we’ve got a group that are really hungry and players that are ready to step up. “Looking at today, we
looked at different people in those areas and they’ve given us real headaches. Whoever goes in there will do a job for sure.” As for Ireland’s prospects of achieving two huge wins, she said: “We’re still the underdog. That’s the reality. We’re still playing two of the best teams in the world. But we want to be competing with them as well.” Click here to sign up to our sport newsletter, bringing you the top stories and biggest headlines from Ireland and beyond .
Carla Ward, Katie McCabe, Chelsea, Arsenal, free transfer, Ireland women, World Cup qualifiers, Netherlands, France, Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Denise O’Sullivan, Emily Murphy