English Women’s Super League champions Chelsea have temporarily parted ways with Polish-born Nigeria-eligible midfielder Ashanti Akpan, sending the 19-year-old on a season-long loan to Southampton, Footynaija.com reports.
Akpan joins Southampton in a bid to fully establish herself as a senior professional, having spent the bulk of the past twelve years developing her craft in the Chelsea’s youth system.
The teenage midfielder will be looking to build on last season’s successful loan spell at Women’s Super League 2 side Birmingham, where she made 15 appearances and almost helped the club secure promotion.
Reacting to the move, Akpan could barely hide her excitement at the opportunity to play at St Mary’s, show the fans what she’s capable of and develop her game even further.
“I’m very excited for the season ahead,” the 19-year-old loanee told Southampton media.
“I feel like another season in the [second tier] will do me a lot of good and allow me to improve a lot as a player.
“I’m really excited to play in front of the fans at St Mary’s, it will be nice to hear the crowd behind us because I think the support throughout the season will be really important for us.”
Who is Ashanti Akpan?
Southampton’s latest signing was born in Warsaw, the capital city of Poland to a Polish mother and a Nigerian father before relocating to England with her family.
Having grown up in England, Akpan is currently eligible to represent the Three Lionesses, Poland and Nigeria at senior international level.
So far, she has featured for England across all youth categories, from the U-15s to the U-23s, potentially giving the Lionesses an edge in terms of her international future.
However, there is still the possibility that Akpan follows in the footsteps of Ashleigh Plumptre in dumping England for the Super Falcons jersey despite turning out for English youth teams.