Exclusive:Rangers favourite set for huge WSL move as Scotland star makes key decision on future
The Rangers midfielder is set to depart the SWPL club this summer.
Rangers and Scotland midfielder Kirsty Maclean is closing in on a transfer to Women’s Super League (WSL) giants Liverpool, The Scotsman understand.
The talented 20-year-old, who has played over 100 games for the Gers since making her debut at the age of just 16 and featured as the club won their maiden SWPL title in 2022, has been identified by the Merseysiders as one of their top summer targets.
Talks are now believed to be at an advanced stage between Maclean and the Liverpool over a move to the St Helens Stadium, as the youngster gets ready to make a huge decision on her future.
The news of Liverpool’s interest in Maclean comes just weeks departure of head coach Jo Potter, who left Rangers late last month in order to join WSL2 side Crystal Palace after winning four trophies in just two years at the Broadwood Stadium.
One of the youngest ever women’s footballers to sign a professional contract in Scotland, Maclean agreed a two-year-deal extension alongside Emma Watson and Jodi McLeary back in 2023, but is now expected to join fellow international midfielder Chelsea Cornet in leaving for pastures new this summer, with the latter signing for Birmingham City earlier this month.
Voted number one in The Scotsman’s annual list of the 30 best players in the Scottish Women's top flight in November 2024, Maclean is viewed as one of Scotland’s most talented young players, and has already won seven caps for the national team after representing the country at various youth levels.
Nicknamed ‘Ini’ by her club teammates, she has been given comparisons to Chelsea and Scotland star Erin Cuthbert due to her low centre of gravity and good ball control. Hampered by injury at times last season, her former manager Potter praised the player’s ability to control a game, emphasizing the significance of her return to fitness by saying it gave the team an "instant lift" when they see her in training.
“It has been great having her back in training,” said Potter in April. “She just fitted straight back in and there’s no worries about her at all. It is just taking our time with her; she is still a young player. There will still be moments where I need to hold her back and say we have got to look after you a little bit. She might be feeling ready to go but that is for me to manage her personally.”
Maclean was named Rangers Women’s Players’ Player of the Year in 2024, and was twice nominated for the PFA Scotland Women’s Young Player of the Year Nominee in 2023 and 2024. She will become the third Scotland international to join Liverpool in recent years, following Jenna Clark’s move from Glasgow City in 2023, and Sam Kerr’s loan move from Bayern Munich in January.
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.