Manchester United have made their first major signing before their debut season in the Women’s Super League, having agreed a pre-contract with the Dutch international Jackie Groenen.
Casey Stoney’s side secured promotion to the top flight in April and won the Championship in the club’s first season. Stoney warned afterwards she would have to improve the quality of the squad if they were to have any chance of making an impact in the WSL .
United released four players – Charlie Devlin, Naomi Hartley, Lucy Roberts and Ebony Salmon – on 15 May and have now announced their first arrival in the highly rated Groenen.
The 24-year-old midfielder played for Chelsea during the 2014-15 season and has 45 caps for the Netherlands. She won the Euro 2017 title with her country on home soil and was voted into the team of the tournament.
She has represented FFC Frankfurt in the German Bundesliga since 2015.
