08 September 2020

England defender Lucy Bronze returns to Manchester City from Champions League winners Lyon

England defender Lucy Bronze has announced her return to Manchester City three years after leaving the club to join Lyon.

The 28-year-old spent three seasons with the Women’s Super League side, adding to her two league titles with Liverpool by clinching a third with City in 2016.

Bronze won three successive Champions League titles while at Lyon (PA Images)

She has been playing in the French Division 1 Feminine since 2017, winning the league and Champions League every year since arriving.

But now, having also scooped individual honours such as the 2019 UEFA Women’s Player of the Year, she feels the time is right to return to England and help Man City bid for a first WSL title since her departure.

Speaking about returning to the club, she said: "I'm really happy to be back here at City. I always had it in my mind that I would return one day and it just feels like the perfect time and opportunity right now.

"I really enjoyed my time in France, but there were so many things that I missed and it's great to be back.

"There's nowhere I'd rather be right now than with Manchester City and I'm really excited to see what the future holds with the exciting squad we have here."

Bronze, who moves back to England on a free transfer after her contract expired with Lyon on August 31, is manager Gareth Taylor’s fourth signing of the summer.

City have already announced the arrivals of World Cup-winning duo Rose Lavelle and Sam Mewis as well as prolific former Everton striker Chloe Kelly.

And Taylor is thrilled to welcome Bronze back to the club, adding: "Her endless individual and team awards only scratch the surface of what a superb player she is."

City narrowly missed out on the WSL title last season after the coronavirus pandemic led to the cut-short campaign being decided on a points-per-game basis, meaning Chelsea leapfrogged them to take the championship.

The Sky Blues made the perfect start to their WSL campaign last weekend as two Georgia Stanway goals gave them a 2-0 win over newly-promoted Aston Villa.

Meanwhile, champions Chelsea were held 1-1 by Manchester United, but 2019 WSL winners Arsenal sent a statement to their rivals with an impressive 6-1 victory against Reading.

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