Manchester City Player Grades: WSL Champions Season Review
The trophy is in the cabinet, the confetti has settled, and Manchester City’s WSL champions can finally be judged. This was a campaign built on a ruthless spine, a world-class centre-forward and a backline that rarely blinked. Some players became stars, some played their part in the shadows, others fought injuries and frustration.
Here is how the champions stack up.
Goalkeepers
Ayaka Yamashita – 7
Seven clean sheets, and every one of them felt secure. Yamashita’s season was not about the spectacular save as much as the calm that spread from her boots. Her distribution suited Andrée Jeglertz’s insistence on building from the back, turning pressure into possession with a clipped pass rather than a panicked clearance. She goes into the final round in the Golden Glove conversation, a fair reflection of a quietly commanding year.
Khiara Keating – 6
Four league appearances, two wins over Tottenham, a victory against Brighton and a clean sheet at Aston Villa. Keating did what was asked of her. At 21, she is learning in an unforgiving environment, and she has looked composed when called upon. The question now is not about talent but trajectory: does she keep fighting behind Yamashita, or look elsewhere for the weekly starts her development craves?
Defenders
Kerstin Casparij – 9
Every title team has an ever-present. City had two, and on the right flank Casparij was relentless. The Netherlands full-back started every WSL game and played like she never wanted to come off. Overlaps, underlaps, whipped crosses, recovery sprints – her energy framed City’s attacking shape. She gave width when the wingers drifted inside and still had the legs to defend her channel. Week after week, she simply turned up and delivered. One of the league’s most reliable performers.
Alex Greenwood – 8.5
The armband never looked heavy. Greenwood’s calm captaincy smoothed out the jagged nerves of a title race. She has waited a long time for this – a first WSL crown for a player who was there in the league’s inaugural season with Everton back in 2011. Several times she has come close with City; this time she marshalled them over the line. On the ball, she dictated tempo. Off it, she radiated control. A leader finally rewarded.
Rebecca Knaak – 7.5
Not the headline act, but often the steady hand. Knaak’s late goal against Liverpool at the start of the month may yet be remembered as one of the defining moments of the title race, a centre-back arriving in the right place at the right time. Strong in the air, tidy with the ball at her feet, she helped City absorb the loss of Laia Aleixandri to Barcelona without losing balance at the back.
Jade Rose – 7.5
Some signings need a season to settle. Rose did not. The Canada international slotted into the defensive unit with impressive speed, reading danger early and building a good understanding with her fellow defenders. At 23, with three more years on her contract, she looks like a cornerstone for the next phase of this City side. This was a debut campaign that promised much more to come.
Leila Ouahabi – 6.5
On the front foot, Ouahabi offers plenty. She drives forward, combines well in advanced areas and carries a real attacking threat down the left. The issue has been the other side of the ball. With Casparij setting such a fierce standard defensively on the opposite flank, the gap in solidity has been hard to ignore. At 33, she may find her place under threat, with a summer upgrade at left-back a very real possibility.
Gracie Prior – 6.5
A handful of appearances, and each one handled with maturity. Prior is still only 21 but already looks like a dependable squad option. She did not shrink when called upon, and now faces a crucial year in her development. Next season will tell whether she becomes a rotation regular or stays on the fringes.
Naomi Layzell – 5.5
Layzell’s season never really got going. A hip injury sustained on England Under-23 duty in October led to surgery in December and ended her involvement. Before that, she had shown flashes of promise in her early outings, performing reasonably well. For her, this campaign will be remembered more for rehab than for minutes.
Midfielders
Yui Hasegawa – 9
Watch her turn. That is where so many City attacks began. Hasegawa’s technical level is elite: tight control, sharp changes of direction, and an almost unflappable composure under pressure. Used slightly higher up the pitch this season, she timed her runs into the box with precision and added an extra cutting edge to City’s play. When the game became frantic, she slowed it to her rhythm. A conductor in sky blue.
Laura Blindkilde Brown – 8
Every champion needs an unsung hero. Blindkilde Brown was exactly that, particularly in the first half of the season. The 22-year-old looked to have nailed down the holding midfield role, screening the defence, recycling possession and doing the ugly work that lets others shine. The January arrival of Sam Coffey clipped her minutes a little, and she can feel slightly unlucky about that. Even so, this was the best season of her young career.
Sam Coffey – 7
Coffey arrived from the US in January and slotted straight into a title-chasing midfield without fuss. She brought experience, positional discipline and the kind of international pedigree that City will lean on in next season’s Champions League. Her impact was not about fireworks but about raising the floor: fewer gaps, smarter pressing, better game management.
Laura Coombs – 6.5
Coombs’ influence went beyond the pitch. At 35, she was no longer a guaranteed starter, but her professionalism and attitude in training helped maintain a tight, unified group. When used, she offered reliability and know-how. Her decision to retire gives this title medal an extra sheen – a fitting final chapter to a long career, signed off with silverware.
Grace Clinton – 6
Her start promised something special. A debut goal against Tottenham, one of her former clubs, in September suggested Clinton was ready to become a key figure after crossing the city divide. Then came injuries. Stops and starts disrupted her rhythm and limited her impact in her first season at City. At 23, there is time, and she will be desperate to make a fuller mark next year.
Sydney Lohmann – 5
On paper, Lohmann looked like a statement signing from Bayern Munich. On the pitch, especially on opening night against Chelsea, she showed glimpses of why. Then fitness issues repeatedly dragged her back. The talent is not in doubt, but this campaign never allowed her to build any sustained momentum.
Forwards
Khadija “Bunny” Shaw – 10
This was her season. Again. Shaw is set to take the Golden Boot and will sweep up a stack of end-of-season honours, and it is hard to argue with any of them. She has been the standout player in the WSL. The best striker in the world? On this evidence, yes. She scored in big games, she feasted against weaker sides, and her movement inside the box made marking her feel like a lost cause. When City needed a goal, they looked to Shaw. More often than not, she answered.
Kerolin – 8.5
When Kerolin clicked, City looked unstoppable. Her understanding with Shaw grew with every game, and in February she produced one of the performances of the season: a stunning hat-trick in the 5-1 demolition of Chelsea that shifted the title race. A lower-body injury robbed her of part of the first half of the campaign and she often came from the bench, but her impact was undeniable. At 26, she is only just getting started in this league.
Lauren Hemp – 8.5
Full-backs knew what was coming and still could not stop it. Hemp’s direct running, pace and delivery made her a nightmare match-up all year. She created more than three chances per 90 minutes on average, numbers that underline her status as one of the league’s most dangerous creators. An ankle injury in the autumn interrupted her charge towards the top of the assist charts, but once fit again she resumed tormenting defenders weekly.
Vivianne Miedema – 8
It says everything about City’s attacking riches that the WSL’s all-time leading scorer could almost slip under the radar. Miedema did not. She simply evolved. Shifting into a deeper No 10 role, she still reached double figures for goals and supplied a healthy stream of assists. Her vision and timing between the lines gave City a different route to goal. At 29, she remains firmly in the world-class bracket.
Aoba Fujino – 7.5
When Fujino got on the ball, the crowd leaned forward. The 22-year-old lit up games with quick feet and inventive touches, often turning tight spaces into chances. A minor injury in January checked her momentum, and concussion in February halted it again, contributing to a slight dip after a sparkling first half of the campaign. Even so, her ceiling is obvious. Still only 22, she looks like one of City’s most exciting long-term prospects.
Iman Beney – 7
Minutes were limited, impact was not. At 19, Beney wrote herself into the story of this title race with ice-cold finishes in its most tense moments. Her late winner in the 3-2 victory over Arsenal was a turning point, a ruthless strike under pressure. A week later she followed it with another crucial goal in the 2-1 win at Anfield. Opportunities have been sparse recently, but those two contributions alone will live long in City memories.
Lily Murphy – 5
Murphy’s season turned on a single, cruel moment. Deep into stoppage time on opening night against Chelsea, the England Under-20 forward suffered a shoulder injury that halted her progress just as it began. She returned to fitness in December but remained an unused substitute in the league, watching on as others seized the spotlight. She may feel aggrieved at the lack of chances, yet her story with City is still in its opening chapters.
A title, a Golden Boot, breakout stars and hardened leaders: City’s season had all the ingredients of a champion’s year. The question now is not whether this group deserved the trophy. It is how far they can stretch this dominance when Europe comes calling.
