6 months ago
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Photo by Gualter Fatia/Getty Images
Portuguese sources are saying the Reds are ready to meet a record breaking release clause to sign the 19 year old attacking player.
It has been a big year for the Liverpool FC Women. The Reds moved into their new permanent training facility at Melwood, and then proceeded to have an extremely successful season that saw them finish fourth in the table. As the year drew to a close, Liverpool also announced that they will be moving into a much more modern stadium in St. Helens for the next decade.
With so many of the big pieces sorted off the pitch, and momentum on the pitch, the question now becomes what steps do Liverpool take to try and break into the upper echelons of the WSL. According to Portuguese publication A Bola, Liverpool are poised to make a statement signing for the present and future.
Canadian starlet Olivia Smith is said to be likely headed to the WSL this summer, with Liverpool pipping Arsenal as the destination. According to the Portuguese outlet, Liverpool are expected to pay a fee approaching the €250,000 release clause set for the player to beat Arsenal to the signing. If this does indeed come to pass, it would smash Liverpool’s previous record fee of £100,000 paid for Sophie Roman Haug last summer.
At just 19 years of age, Smith was a revelation for Sporting CP in her first season with the club. Deployed as a forward, she scored 16 goals and was selected as the best young player in the league. That all came after being names as a part of Canada’s senior World Cup team the summer prior. Smith also took part for Canada in the CONCACAF Women’s Gold Cup this past February, scoring her first senior goal and earning the Best Young Player Award for the tournament.
If Liverpool were to complete the signing of Olivia Smith, it would give the Reds a player who can both create and score from wide areas. Smith is known for her bursting runs on and off the ball to pair with a wicked shot and good vision with her passing. It would also give Liverpool another teenage sensation alongside Mia Enderby to build around for the future.
