Ashanti Akpan who is eligible to play for the Super Falcons has signed for Birmingham City on a season long loan deal from Chelsea.
The 18-year-old, who penned her first professional contract early this year, has been with Chelsea since age seven and has been through the development squads.
She won the FA Youth Cup during the 2021/22 season and the FA WSL Academy Cup in 2022/23 season.
Rising Star’s Journey
Akpan was promoted to the senior team in March 2023 and was used as a substitute in a 3-1 win over Reading in the FA Cup quarter-final match.
Chelsea confirmed her loan move to second-tier English side Birmingham City for the 2024/25 season.
“It feels great to be here, I’m really excited. I think it’ll be a good experience for me and I’m excited that I’m starting this next phase of my journey here.”
“I’m really excited to be in the championship this season; I think it’ll be challenging, and I’m up for it. I felt like the Blues was a place to develop, and I feel like it was the right choice.”
International Eligibility and Future Prospects
She is eligible to play for Poland, England, and Nigeria. She was born in Poland to a Polish mother and a Nigerian father and was raised in England.
She has played for the Three Lionesses at under-15, under-16, under-17, and under-18 level and played in this summer’s under-19 championships in Lithuania where England got knocked out in the semi-finals.
Akpan has demonstrated that she is Nigerian away from the football pitch through modeling in a kit release and sharing the pictures on her social media handles.
Meanwhile Sportsbuddy have reported the exit of the Super Falcons at the ongoing Olympics in Paris as Oshoala laments committing same mistake.
Birmingham City will begin their championship season with a match against AFC Sunderland Ladies on the 8th of September.
