​Chelsea have completed the signing of Japanese international attacker Manaka Matsukubo on a five-year deal. WSL Full-Time learned of the move through an official Chelsea press release issued this evening. The 21-year-old arrives from North Carolina Courage of the NWSL, where she has spent the past three seasons and helped lift the 2023 NWSL Challenge Cup. Matsukubo began her career with the JFA Academy Fukushima before moving to Mynavi Sendai. She later joined North Carolina Courage on loan, a move that was made permanent. Internationally, Matsukubo has earned 18 caps for Japan and has scored once.
Upon completing the transfer, Matsukubo said: “I’m so excited to be joining Chelsea, a club with a lot of history. As a small child, I followed Chelsea because it is a club everyone in the world knows about. The club has a strong history of winning trophies and has performed at the top level, so I couldn’t pass up this opportunity, and I want to help continue this club’s tradition of winning trophies for years to come.”
Matsukubo is Chelsea’s second signing of the summer window.