WSL champions Manchester City have begun preparations for the 2026/27 season, with draws away to Fiorentina and at home to Barcelona. Now, the champions turn their attention to the new campaign.
We caught up with Jade Rose, Sam Coffey and Laura Blindkilde Brown at the Manchester City Media Day in July to discuss the upcoming season.
It’s been a very busy transfer window for Man City, who have said goodbye to a few of their key players, with Kerolin departing for Barcelona, Leila Ouahabi heading to US team Chicago Stars, Laura Coombs retiring and Khiara Keating heading to Liverpool. With so many changes to the squad, attention quickly turned to who City would bring in as replacements.
So far, the Cityzens have brought in two of Sarina Wiegman’s Lionesses, with Beth Mead arriving from Arsenal and Niamh Charles joining from Chelsea.
When asked how the new additions were settling in, Jade Rose said:
“They’ve brought a new energy to the group.”
“I think they’re great additions to the group even in training, just you know pushing that level, pushing the intensity so it’s been great to see.”
We then turned the conversation to European competition and the importance Beth Mead and Niamh Charles could have on City’s return to the Champions League.
Laura Blindkilde Brown said:
“They bring in so much quality. Beth has so much experience in the Champions League as well and yeah Niamh being at Chelsea for so many years, she knows what the standard is.”
After missing out on qualification for the UEFA Women’s Champions League in 25/26, winning the league this past season means they’re back in the competition this year. But European competition brings more games, so we asked Laura Blindkilde Brown how the team are preparing. She said:
“We’re trying to make it more intense in training and then a few of our preseason games like when we’re playing Fiorentina, that replicates what a champions league game would be like.”
Sam Coffey is a player who only recently joined Manchester City, coming from Portland Thorns FC in 2026. At the end of the season, she underwent surgery, missing the final game of the season. We asked her about her recovery and how it’s going ahead of the new season.
“I’ve been recovering really well. Yeah I’m back on the pitch, I’m running, starting to join bits of team training so just like continuing to build up to full fitness. I’m definitely on track.”
We also asked Coffey about manager Andrée Jeglertz and what he’s like to work under. She said:
“He is, I mean definitely a special manager.”
“He is so clear in his principles and how he wants to play. I think as a player that’s really refreshing cause I think it’s easy for tactics to get like muddled or confusing and so being able to play for someone who values principles but also encourages freedom within the structure, I think is such a fun way to play.”
Finally, with just a couple of weeks to go until the first game of the season, we asked Jade Rose how she’s feeling and what the mentality is going into the new season.
“You know we’ve talked a lot about the fact we are the reigning champs but in a way, it doesn’t matter anymore.“
“Like last season was last season and the slates wiped clean, and we can’t you know ride the wave we were riding in the previous season. Like everything starts new and we have to show up that way.”
The Cityzens certainly seem ready for the new season. The question now is whether they can defend their WSL title and add European silverware to the cabinet too.
