Chelsea have signed centre-back Brook Aspin from Bristol City, the club have confirmed.

The 18-year-old has put pen to paper on a four-year contract with the Blues but she will return on loan to Bristol next season in order to continue her development.

Manager Emma Hayes says the club have been keeping tabs on Aspin for a long time and they believe the defender can be a very good player in the years to come:

‘Brooke is a player that we have been tracking for the last three years. She has extensive experience for her age and is a young centre-back that we have very high hopes for in the future.’

Bristol City gained promotion to the top flight last season so Aspin will be gaining very useful first-team experience in the Women’s Super League.

The centre-half made her senior debut as a 16-year-old and she has continued to improve over the past two seasons. Aspin has also featured prominently for England at youth level, playing for the Under 17s and Under 18s, as well as captaining the Under 19s, demonstrating her leadership qualities.

Chelsea have recruited seven players so far this summer

Emma Hayes’ side started their summer recruitment early by announcing back in March that Nicky Evrard would be joining from OH Leuven. Even before the season ended, they had confirmed their second addition, with midfielder Sjoeke Nusken arriving from Eintracht Frankfurt.

Over the past six weeks, a number of other players have been brought in. At the start of last month, it was announced that Lyon forward Catarina Macario had signed for the Blues on a free transfer. Since then, deals for the likes of Atletico Madrid fullback Alejandra Bernabe, Paris Saint-Germain’s Ashley Lawrence and Aston Villa goalkeeper Hannah Hampton have also been finalised, reinforcing what is an already formidable Chelsea squad.