Manchester City have signed Spain international Leila Ouahabi from Barcelona Femeni on a two-year contract.
Ouahabi, 29, will join on the expiration of her contract with the Primera Division Champions – FC Barcelona Femeni – and she will be reunited with her former Barcelona team mate Vicky Losada at City.
The decorated left back played an integral role in five Primera Division titles, seven Copa de la Reina de Futbol successes, two Supercopa Femeninas, three Copa Catalunyas and one UEFA Women’s Champions League title during a total of 13 years at Barcelona with a 3 year spell at Valencia between 2013 and 2016.
Internationally, she started out within Spain’s U19s before earning her senior stripes in February 2016, making her debut against Romania before helping the team to win the Algarve Cup just a year later, scoring the winning goal in the final against Canada.
She also represented her homeland at the 2019 Women’s World Cup where they progressed past the group stages of the competition for the very first time in their history before narrowly losing to the United States of America in the Round of 16.
Ouahabi will feature in this summer’s UEFA Women’s European Championships for Spain before staying to compete with Demi Stokes for the left back slot at City.
Speaking about her move to Manchester, Ouahabi said: “I am very happy. I was looking forward to this moment and I am really happy now it is all done.
“Manchester City have always been a team that caught my eye. I like their style of football so much and the DNA of the Club is very exciting.
“This is going to be a completely different experience for me, and I’m really looking forward to it.
“I want to continue enjoying my football and City are a strong Club.
“Both personally and professionally, I think I will grow and develop here.
“I also want to keep winning trophies. I like winning and being competitive, and I am coming here to win trophies for City.”
Head Coach Gareth Taylor added: “Leila is a player who has become accustomed to success throughout her career, and we’re thrilled that she has joined us in a bid to continue that here in England.
“She has a vast amount of experience in high-pressured situations and will give everything she has to win, which matches our own ethos perfectly.
“She is a player who we have admired for a long time given her standing in the game and to finally have secured her signature is incredibly exciting.
“We’re very much looking forward to seeing her make her mark on the English game.”