Manchester City Sign Carlotta Wamser to Strengthen Defense
Manchester City have moved to reinforce their title-winning back line with the signing of Germany international Carlotta Wamser from Bayer Leverkusen on a four-year deal.
The 22-year-old arrives as a modern full-back in every sense: quick, aggressive, and comfortable on either flank. City see her as immediate depth and long-term investment, a player who can lock down both left-back and right-back as the demands of a packed season bite.
Wamser joined Leverkusen from Eintracht Frankfurt on a free transfer in July 2025 and developed into one of the Bundesliga’s most reliable young defenders. Now she steps into the WSL champions’ dressing room at a time when they badly need fresh legs.
This is City’s third major move of the summer, following the arrivals of defender Niamh Charles from Chelsea and forward Beth Mead from Arsenal. On paper, it looks like a statement window. On the pitch, it looks like necessity.
Charles is among a significant list of injury absentees that also includes Grace Clinton, Vivianne Miedema, Jade Rose and Laura Wienroither. For a side expected to dominate on multiple fronts, that is a serious chunk of quality missing before a ball has been kicked in anger.
So Wamser’s timing could hardly be better. City begin their WSL title defence at home to Birmingham City on Sunday, and the new signing is walking straight into a squad that needs her energy.
Her pedigree is clear. Wamser has 14 senior caps for Germany, having climbed through the country’s youth ranks and helped the Under-17s win the European Championship in 2019. Those tournaments harden players. They also reveal who can handle pressure. City have clearly decided she can.
Her first words as a City player carried the tone of someone who knows exactly what she is stepping into.
"I had a perfect welcome here and I already feel very good here and I look forward to my time here in Manchester," she said, speaking with the calm of a player who has already made one big move and thrived.
"The English league is the best league in the world and Manchester City is one of the best clubs in the world.
"I feel like I need the next step for my career and I feel that I can develop as a player here. And I like the challenge as well, so I think it's the perfect step for me right now."
City believe the same. Director of football Therese Sjogran made it clear this was not an opportunistic swoop but a long-tracked target finally secured.
"We are delighted to welcome Carlotta to the club," Sjogran said. "She is a player we've admired for some time and know she will bring energy, passion and a willingness to learn to the team.
"For such a young, exciting talent to trust us with the next step of her career is something we feel conveys a strong message of what we are building here."
That message is hard to miss. City are not easing off after winning the WSL. They are doubling down, refreshing the squad with players who can grow into the next cycle of success.
For Wamser, the challenge is immediate and unforgiving: adapt to the pace of the English game, shoulder the expectations of a champion, and help a patched-up defence hold firm from day one.
Birmingham City will be the first to test how quickly she settles. The rest of the league will be watching just as closely.
