With Sandy MacIver and Ellie Roebuck unavailable, the Cityzens have made an emergency loan signing who could need to start against West Ham on Sunday
To win a major trophy, every team needs a little bit of luck. However, as Manchester City enter the final stretch of the Women’s Super League title race, they are certainly lacking some when it comes to injuries, to the point that their starting goalkeeper for Sunday’s clash with West Ham could be a player who only joined the club last weekend.
City haven’t won the title since 2016, an almighty wait for a team of its stature, especially considering the number of domestic cup triumphs that have come in those eight years. They are currently in a fantastic position to end that barren run though, level on points with Chelsea at the top of the WSL table with just four games to go.
It is a very real possibility that the honour of being crowned champions of England could come down to goal difference, with the two title rivals regularly exchanging places in the table based on that factor. It’s a sign of how close this chase has been – but it also makes City’s situation in the goalkeeping department, which has led to an emergency loan signing, even more significant.
GettyStrength in depth
It’s a remarkable turn of events that City’s starting goalkeeper against West Ham this weekend could be their fourth-choice shot-stopper, because there is perhaps no area in the squad better stocked. Gareth Taylor’s side started the season with Khiara Keating, Sandy MacIver and Ellie Roebuck all jostling for the No.1 role, and though it was a surprise that the former, still a teenager, managed to usurp two senior internationals for the starting berth, she has more than justified her place with some outstanding performances.
That form earned Keating a first senior England call-up in October and she has been included in Sarina Wiegman’s three squads since that window, too. However, she had to withdraw from the Lionesses’ latest fixtures against Sweden and Ireland due to a knee problem.
AdvertisementGettyDevastating blow
Ordinarily, that wouldn’t have been an issue for City. After all, they have a perfectly capable second-choice goalkeeper in MacIver, who joined from Everton back in 2022 and has assumed most of the cup duties in her time in Manchester.
The 25-year-old’s excellent shot-stopping abilities earned her an England cap in early 2021 and a place in Great Britain’s squad for that year’s Olympic women’s football tournament. Since then, MacIver has switched international allegiances to Scotland and has been firmly in contention to be their No.1, making five appearances since debuting in October.
However, she suffered a truly devastating setback last week. Just eight minutes into the team's UEFA Women's Euro qualifier with Serbia, she appeared to jar her knee painfully when collecting a cross, and though she was able to walk off the pitch unaided and with minimal fuss, the worst was later confirmed: MacIver had ruptured her ACL and will be out for an extended period of time.
Getty‘Really tough time’
But even without Keating and MacIver, City would still have one of England’s best goalkeepers in Roebuck, someone who has played for her country 11 times and was Team GB’s No.1 at the Olympics as a 21-year-old. Except she, too, has been dealing with something serious.
Roebuck hasn’t played a single minute for club or country this season, which has been particularly odd given the calibre of player she is. It looked like she was simply out-of-favour, until she released a statement in March revealing that she had suffered a left occipital infarct, which is a type of stroke.
“Thankfully, there is no lasting damage to my brain function or vision,” she explained. "I've had many weeks of follow-up tests, specialist appointments, and with the support of the medical team at the club, I'm on the road to recovery. It's great to be back with the girls, working on my rehab and, more importantly, feeling back to being normal Ellie.
"It's been a really tough time, but with the support of my family, I'm now really positive and excited for my return to the pitch. Life can throw unexpected challenges at you and if this year has taught me anything, it's that I'm strong and will give it all I've got for the thing I love most.”
GettyEmergency calls
The good news for City is that they did not have a game straight off the back of April’s international break, due to their shock elimination from the FA Cup at the hands of eventual finalists Tottenham. It has given Keating more time to nurse her knee problem ahead of this weekend’s clash with West Ham, and allowed the club to work on an emergency loan signing, that of Katie Startup.
Startup is a former England youth international who spent time in Chelsea’s academy before getting her senior breakthrough at Charlton, aged 19. She was the London club's first-choice goalkeeper throughout the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons, earning a move to WSL club Brighton as a result.
It is from the Seagulls that Startup joins City on a temporary basis, with Nils Nielsen, Man City's director of women's football, saying upon the announcement: “She has a wealth of experience and a solid track record at a high level, and we believe she is a fantastic player to come in for this period.”