After close to six years, 161 appearances, 32 goals and some set-piece statistics that’ll make your eyes bulge, Katie Zelem departs Manchester United as she joined us: as a winner.
One of 22 players recruited ahead of United Women’s inaugural campaign of 2018/19, there were older, more experienced heads in that group, be it defenders Amy Turner and Alex Greenwood, or goalkeeper Siobhan Chamberlain, but among the first-term roster was a born-and-bred Red from Failsworth, near Oldham – a midfielder with a distinctive surname and on-pitch appearance, European experience, and more major honours than any of her new team-mates.
Already a WSL winner with Liverpool, and a Serie A Femminile champion with Juventus, the 22-year-old jumped at the chance to return to Greater Manchester. She knew what it meant to wear that shirt, and she was even prepared to drop down to playing second-tier football to make the move happen.
Already a WSL winner with Liverpool, and a Serie A Femminile champion with Juventus, the 22-year-old jumped at the chance to return to Greater Manchester. She knew what it meant to wear that shirt, and she was even prepared to drop down to playing second-tier football to make the move happen.
“It took quite a lot of deliberation,”Zelem admitted in an interview soon after joining Casey Stoney’s fledgling side. “We’d just won the league [at Juventus], so we’d qualified for the Champions League, and that was one of my aims. To step away from that was quite difficult, but I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t think it was right.”
And when we talk about Zel ‘joining the Reds’, what we really mean, of course, is ‘rejoin’, with Katie being one of many – Millie Turner, Ella Toone and Kirsty Hanson among the others – to have graduated through the club’s Academy (the Manchester United Foundation-run Centre of Excellence, which would become the Regional Talent Club) before needing to leave United in their late teens in order to start a senior career elsewhere.
As one of the stars of that Academy side, young midfielder Katie seemed as likely as anyone to make it at the highest grade. In one rare interview, filmed in 2012 soon after her 16th birthday, Zelem speaks like a professional-in-waiting, while the clip sees Academy coach Emma Fletcher recognise the full potential of the England youth-teamer, who was then into her eighth season with United’s Centre of Excellence.
Fast-forward six years, by which time Katie had accrued over 70 senior appearances for Liverpool and Juventus, when the news broke that a professional United side was to be formed to compete in the 2018/19 Championship. Excitement spread rapidly across the whole football-mad Zelem family. “It was crazy,” Katie would recall. “My dad called me and I was in Italy at the time, so I wasn’t as up-to-date as people over here. He was like, ‘Katie, it’s happening! They’ve pulled everything together and they’re going to be competing this year!’ After hearing that, I cannot lie, it was always a dream to come back.”
As one of the stars of that Academy side, young midfielder Katie seemed as likely as anyone to make it at the highest grade. In one rare interview, filmed in 2012 soon after her 16th birthday, Zelem speaks like a professional-in-waiting, while the clip sees Academy coach Emma Fletcher recognise the full potential of the England youth-teamer, who was then into her eighth season with United’s Centre of Excellence.
“She’s been fantastic the whole time she’s been with here with us,”said Fletcher, the inspirational coach who remains at the club, with 2023 seeing the United Women Academy Player of the Year award named in her honour. “Her attitude, the way she’s been with the other girls and helped them along as well... she’s a real success.”
Fast-forward six years, by which time Katie had accrued over 70 senior appearances for Liverpool and Juventus, when the news broke that a professional United side was to be formed to compete in the 2018/19 Championship. Excitement spread rapidly across the whole football-mad Zelem family. “It was crazy,” Katie would recall. “My dad called me and I was in Italy at the time, so I wasn’t as up-to-date as people over here. He was like, ‘Katie, it’s happening! They’ve pulled everything together and they’re going to be competing this year!’ After hearing that, I cannot lie, it was always a dream to come back.”
Her parents and extended family – including dad Alan and his twin Peter, who both played professionally in the Football League – have since been able to follow Katie’s career from much closer quarters than Turin (or indeed Liverpool), with her mum and dad beyond proud of what their girl has gone on to achieve, for country (on 12 occasions, including a silver medal at last year’s World Cup finals), and most certainly for club.
For Katie and her fellow ‘Originals’ to have spent the last six years here – Ella Toone, Millie Turner and Leah Galton – 2018-2023 had been five seasons of steady progression, from Championship winners, to reaching a cup final, to securing a Champions League spot. So when Zel raised the FA Cup aloft at Wembley last month there was a palpable sense that this was the next step for the Reds, and the biggest one yet at that – a major trophy for every United fan inside the national stadium, as well as those on the pitch, to savour.
And with diehard United fan Katie firmly ticking both boxes, what a pair of arenas for her to sign off her time with the Reds – Wembley one weekend, and Old Trafford the next; the stadium where she used to watch the men play as a kid, and where she was even a flag holder on Champions League nights.
Thankfully the Irishman survived the experience, while Zelem got to show off her flag-waving skills once more come full-time at Wembley last month, in what would prove to be her penultimate United appearance.
For Katie and her fellow ‘Originals’ to have spent the last six years here – Ella Toone, Millie Turner and Leah Galton – 2018-2023 had been five seasons of steady progression, from Championship winners, to reaching a cup final, to securing a Champions League spot. So when Zel raised the FA Cup aloft at Wembley last month there was a palpable sense that this was the next step for the Reds, and the biggest one yet at that – a major trophy for every United fan inside the national stadium, as well as those on the pitch, to savour.
And with diehard United fan Katie firmly ticking both boxes, what a pair of arenas for her to sign off her time with the Reds – Wembley one weekend, and Old Trafford the next; the stadium where she used to watch the men play as a kid, and where she was even a flag holder on Champions League nights.
“Coming through the Academy, they’d use the girls’ and the boys’ teams to do those flags, and it’s one of my fondest memories,”she told us in 2022. “We were a bit small for the massive banner in the centre circle, but we’d be the ones holding the Champions League flags by the goals. I remember I nearly hit someone – I was swinging it, giving it a good go and I think it might have been Denis Irwin! I thought, ‘oh god, I’ve nearly knocked out a legend!’”
Thankfully the Irishman survived the experience, while Zelem got to show off her flag-waving skills once more come full-time at Wembley last month, in what would prove to be her penultimate United appearance.
Our latest date at Old Trafford didn’t go to plan, to say the least, with opponents Chelsea in ruthless form as they sought to beat Manchester City to the title in Emma Hayes’s final game in charge, but it’s a ground Zelem thrived at in our previous fixtures there, with four goals and an assist in five outings.
Understandably, though (her middle name is ‘Leigh’, after all) our skipper came to regard another, somewhat smaller stadium as her spiritual home in recent years. Any LSV matchgoer across our 77 fixtures played there over the past six years will be able to recall at least one classic Zel moment: be it our first-ever home goal, v Sheffield United in 2018; the penalty to finish off her former club Liverpool in our maiden meeting with our biggest club rivals in 2019; breaking the deadlock in a first win against Manchester City later in the same year; the time she scored direct from a corner – twice! – in the same game v Leicester in March 2022 (having netted from another corner away to City in our previous fixture). Bend it like Zelem? No one does it better.
With a sharp footballing brain and composed on-pitch demeanour, allied with a pair of velvet feet, Katie has always excelled at making the hard stuff look easy. A quick shuffle into space to deceive her opponent, followed by a sly pass to suddenly turn defence into attack. Often it’s only when you watch the highlights back when you actually notice it: a United goal that can be traced right back to a split-second moment from the no.10 in the middle. This is borne out in the stats, with Zelem creating 57 chances for her team-mates in the WSL last season – the most of any player in the division – while no player in the division made more tackles (72), or played more passes into the opposition box (204) in 2023/24.
Understandably, though (her middle name is ‘Leigh’, after all) our skipper came to regard another, somewhat smaller stadium as her spiritual home in recent years. Any LSV matchgoer across our 77 fixtures played there over the past six years will be able to recall at least one classic Zel moment: be it our first-ever home goal, v Sheffield United in 2018; the penalty to finish off her former club Liverpool in our maiden meeting with our biggest club rivals in 2019; breaking the deadlock in a first win against Manchester City later in the same year; the time she scored direct from a corner – twice! – in the same game v Leicester in March 2022 (having netted from another corner away to City in our previous fixture). Bend it like Zelem? No one does it better.
With a sharp footballing brain and composed on-pitch demeanour, allied with a pair of velvet feet, Katie has always excelled at making the hard stuff look easy. A quick shuffle into space to deceive her opponent, followed by a sly pass to suddenly turn defence into attack. Often it’s only when you watch the highlights back when you actually notice it: a United goal that can be traced right back to a split-second moment from the no.10 in the middle. This is borne out in the stats, with Zelem creating 57 chances for her team-mates in the WSL last season – the most of any player in the division – while no player in the division made more tackles (72), or played more passes into the opposition box (204) in 2023/24.
Katie also leads the way with set-piece assists in the history of the WSL – 17, with her tee-up for Millie Turner to head home against Everton in March seeing our captain overtake Jo Potter’s long-standing record. And we saw that again in the FA Cup final, of course, with Rachel Williams being the grateful beneficiary of Katie’s deep second-half free-kick from way out wide on the right.
Although it can be easy to forget in these data-crunching times, there is more to this game than statistics, and since first taking the armband on a permanent basis following Alex Greenwood’s switch to Lyon in 2019 (Amy Turner acted as back-up to Greenwood in our Championship campaign), Katie has been a pillar of support for every team-mate; an arm-round-the-shoulder kind of skipper who always opts for encouragement over criticism, ensuring that no heads drop during difficult moments.
She’s also always made sure that matchgoing fans get the credit they deserve, often leading the way with post-match applause, and if time allows an autograph and a chat – especially with the most dedicated, those hardcore Reds who travel over land and (all too briefly last season) sea. Win, lose or draw, no women’s team in Europe has support quite like Manchester United, and Zel knows that.
“Practice makes perfect, 100 per cent,”she told us after beating that particular record. “You’re not going to get every one right, but if you’ve got an eight-out-of-10 chance of it going where you want it every time and it being a high-quality ball, there’s definitely a better chance of your team scoring. It doesn’t happen by accident. It’s something that when I was younger I practised a lot – whether it be ball striking, ball placement, corners, penalties, free-kicks... and it’s something I practise a lot now. I can see that it’s paying off.”
Although it can be easy to forget in these data-crunching times, there is more to this game than statistics, and since first taking the armband on a permanent basis following Alex Greenwood’s switch to Lyon in 2019 (Amy Turner acted as back-up to Greenwood in our Championship campaign), Katie has been a pillar of support for every team-mate; an arm-round-the-shoulder kind of skipper who always opts for encouragement over criticism, ensuring that no heads drop during difficult moments.
She’s also always made sure that matchgoing fans get the credit they deserve, often leading the way with post-match applause, and if time allows an autograph and a chat – especially with the most dedicated, those hardcore Reds who travel over land and (all too briefly last season) sea. Win, lose or draw, no women’s team in Europe has support quite like Manchester United, and Zel knows that.
An approachable leader, Katie’s become increasingly aware of the impact she can have away from the pitch, and in recent seasons she’s thrived in that sense. Always open to giving advice to the girls in the Academy, who all strive to emulate her success, to attending Foundation events, she’s never been less than generous with her time.
On a club level, Zel’s acutely aware of United’s history, acknowledging the importance of commemorating the Munich Air Disaster, which in her role as captain she’s done in such a respectful manner at the Old Trafford service on 6 February each year.
Katie’s commitment to helping others also extended to her joining the PFA Players’ Board last summer – “If I can help make changes off the pitch to better the women’s game, that’s something I’m keen to do” – while here in club media we must thank her for her 57 match-programme columns, which she’d so often diligently send over on her day off, or via WhatsApp voice notes while away on England duty, in order to meet our deadlines. Fittingly, her final column saw her sign off with a message for the fans on behalf of the entire squad. ‘You have always stuck by us and we couldn’t ask for any more,’ she wrote. ‘That FA Cup win and that medal is for you as much as it is for us. Thank you.’
Thank you, Zel. Wherever your career takes you from here, your place in Manchester United history will never be forgotten.
On a club level, Zel’s acutely aware of United’s history, acknowledging the importance of commemorating the Munich Air Disaster, which in her role as captain she’s done in such a respectful manner at the Old Trafford service on 6 February each year.
“I was at United from eight years old, so Munich is something I’ve always known about, from being around places like The Cliff,”she told us at the 65th anniversary of the disaster last year. “Growing up I was surrounded by information and facts about United being the greatest club in the world, and how big a tragedy Munich was, and the amazing players and people that were lost that day. It’s so important that kids growing up now know that history.”
Katie’s commitment to helping others also extended to her joining the PFA Players’ Board last summer – “If I can help make changes off the pitch to better the women’s game, that’s something I’m keen to do” – while here in club media we must thank her for her 57 match-programme columns, which she’d so often diligently send over on her day off, or via WhatsApp voice notes while away on England duty, in order to meet our deadlines. Fittingly, her final column saw her sign off with a message for the fans on behalf of the entire squad. ‘You have always stuck by us and we couldn’t ask for any more,’ she wrote. ‘That FA Cup win and that medal is for you as much as it is for us. Thank you.’
Thank you, Zel. Wherever your career takes you from here, your place in Manchester United history will never be forgotten.