Well, it was another eventful transfer deadline day involving Newcastle United on Thursday. This time the Women’s team being really busy as they prepare to open their WSL2 season at Nottingham Forest on Sunday afternoon.
A tough game in prospect as Forest themselves have been very proactive in their recruitment this close season as well. United though made two final signings on deadline day and now the attention will turn to how many of those Becky Langley will select in her first starting XI of the season.
There’s certainly a very intriguing question to be asked as to who will be the starting goalkeeper for the Forest game as Langley has brought in two international keepers to join last season’s regular No. 1 Claudia Moan.
One permanent signing and one loan signing came through the doors on Thursday though. Right back Jorja Fox comes in on a season long loan from WSL powerhouses Chelsea. A team Fox joined as an 8-year-old graduate and who she made her professional debut for back in 2020.
In her first two seasons she only played five games across two seasons before going out on loan to Charlton in 2022 where she made 13 appearances scoring one goal before switching to Brighton & Hove Albion playing 24 games across three competitions before tearing her ACL.
She recovered from that and was loaned to Crystal Palace for the 2024/25 season but unfortunately in pre-season did her ACL again. Now she’s at The Toon and looking to rebuild her career and move forward again whilst retaining her Chelsea status as a contracted player.
The other signing United made opens up a real interesting situation for Langley as they brought in Finnish International goal keeper Anna Tamminen who has been capped 11 times for her country as well as being Finland’s goalkeeper of the year 3 years running 2018, 19 and 20.
Tamminen then moved to Hammarby IF in Sweden’s top league where she’s played for the last four seasons winning the league’s Most Valuable Player of the Award in 2023 as well as helping her side to a league championship and cup double.
That season she went through a period of 757 minutes without conceding a goal and kept 13 clean sheets as she helped Hammerby win the league for the first time in 38 years. So coming into Newcastle she has quite the pedigree and it’s difficult to see her not being the starting keeper.
That said Wor Lasses also signed Netherlands International keeper Femke Liefting this week on a season long loan from Chelsea. The stopper who has played for the Netherlands at Under-16, 17, 19 and 20 level received her first call-up to the senior squad in October 2024.
She then moved from AZ Alkmaar in January 2025 to Chelsea and signed a three-and-a-half-year contract although she’s yet to play for the WSL outfit. One would imagine that Chelsea are expecting Liefting to see game time at Newcastle after allowing them to sign for The Lady Mags.
Now, add in current no. 1 Claudia Moan who Newcastle took from Sunderland last summer and who was the first-choice all last season. It certainly adds more conjecture and debate about who will start against Forest on Sunday. An interesting selection ahead for Langley.
But then after making so many close season signings across the summer and releasing just as many, those travelling and those watching from afar are a buzz with excitement for the opening games in the WSL2 and seeing Langley’s new look squad.
