21. Walsh

Born in Rochdale, England, Keira Walsh (April 8, 1997) spent time developing in youth teams in her local area before she joined the Blackburn Rovers academy.

In 2014 and still only 17 years old, she signed for Manchester City, going onto make her competitive debut and become a key part of the team that would win the Continental Cup that year.

While featuring for the blue half of Manchester, Walsh would become one of the best midfielders in the world, winning 4 League Cups (2014, 2016, 2019 and 2022), a Super League title (2016) and three FA Cups (2017, 2019, 2020), and well as a key cog in the City side.

In her first season as a blaugrana, 2022/23, Walsh became a first fixture in Jonatan Giráldez's treble winning team making more than 30 appearances in all competitions. 

Walsh is also a key player for the English national team. After featuring for the youth sides, she was called up and made her debut for the senior squad in 2017, before going on to win the SheBelieves Cup in the United States of America in 2019. She also represented her country at the 2019 World Cup, where England reached the semifinals.

Summer 2022 saw Walsh in the engine room of the England side that won the European Championship in her native country. The Barça midfielder was also named player of the match in the final when England defeated Germany. In February 2023 Walsh was named in the FIFPro XI for 2022 at the FIFA Awards in Paris. 

In the summer of 2023, Walsh reached the final of the World Cup with England where they lost 1-0 to Spain.

TECHNICAL PROFILE

Keira is a defensive midfielder with outstanding playmaking skills. A great passer of the ball with excellent reading of the game, Walsh also stands out for her hardworking attitude and ball recoveries.