Wolves Women have completed their first acquisition of the summer with the signing of midfielder Abi Loydon.
Loydon, 19, rose through the ranks at West Bromwich Albion, first joining the club as an under-10 before going on to break into the first-team in recent seasons and amassing well over 80 games.
Capped at youth level for England, Loydon was recognised by her coaching staff at the Baggies as she collected the Young Player of the Season award for the second time in 2023/24.
Loydon scored her first senior goal for West Brom away to AFC Fylde in April 2023 before captaining the side at the end of the same campaign.
The youngster also has an impressive resume at international level having been involved in England camps at under-17, under-18 and development phase squad level.
Last season, Loydon was a regular for the Baggies, making 26 appearances in all competitions and scoring one goal. She was also part of the Leicester City academy squad who lifted the U21 Plate in April.
On securing his first summer signing, manager Dan McNamara said: “I’m absolutely delighted to get Abi through the door. She’s a player that’s been on our radar for a number of years now, having come across her in various fixtures against Albion.
“We’ve always highlighted her as somebody we’d potentially like to work with in the future and we felt this summer was the right time to go and get her in.
“She’s got youth international experience and great pedigree. She’s only 19 years old and to have three years of experience playing within tier three is credit to where she’s at within her footballing journey. Hopefully we can take her onto the next level and develop her as a young player. We look forward to playing a part in her journey.”
McNamara has credited West Brom for the way they have developed Loydon over the past nine years and believes the midfielder is a perfect fit for the type of player the Old Gold are looking to recruit moving forwards.
“She won Young Player of the Season last season at Albion. They’ve been fantastic with her development over the last few years and she is certainly someone we are looking to invest our time in now.
“She’s someone who fits the mould of our recruitment model. We want to bring young talent to the club who we can develop over a number of years and hopefully she can play a big part in putting the club where we want to be.
“The supporters probably know what they’re going to get from Abi – they’ve seen her battle over the last few years against our teams.
“She’s tenacious, she puts herself about, she’s got real quality, she handles the ball really well and she can pick a pass.
“She’s already fitted in quite seamlessly into the squad and we’re looking forward to seeing how we can help her improve.”
