Fran Kirby signs new Chelsea contract until at least 2023
Chelsea women forward Fran Kirby has committed her future to the club by signing a new two-year contract extension that will run until the summer of 2023. The deal also includes the option of a further season, which means it can be extended until 2024.
Kirby has returned to her best form for Chelsea this season after a period of illness ruled her out for several months in 2019/20 and even threatened her career.
The 27-year-old has scored 15 times in 21 appearances for the Blues this season and is already the club’s all-time leading goalscorer following her 2015 transfer from Reading.
Should she see this contract through to completion in 2024, Kirby will have been at Chelsea for almost a decade and will have given most of her senior career and all her best years to the club.
“I’ve been a part of this club for a very long time, and it didn’t take much thought. I knew where I wanted to be, and I think you could see that in my performances,” Kirby told ChelseaFC.com.
“I was really trying to prove to myself, to the fans who haven’t been able to watch me for a long time and to the club. It was a no-brainer for me that I wanted to stay in this environment.
“I really wanted to work and prove that I was worthy of a new contract. I’ve spent a lot of time out ill and I remember speaking to Emma [Hayes] at the start of the year and I said I didn’t want anything given to me, I wanted to earn my spot to play, I wanted to earn my spot to be involved with this team and stay in this team.
“That’s been a massive goal of mine this season and I want to keep doing that. I’ve signed a new contract, but I want to make sure that I keep pushing myself every day and as long as I keep doing that, I know that I’ll be in a good place.”
Kirby has already won three Women’s Super League titles with Chelsea, as well as the shortened 2017 Spring Series, with the club currently on course for another this season. They also remain in the Champions League at the quarter-final stage and are one of several clubs hoping to finally end Lyon’s longstanding dominance in the competition.
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