Manchester City Signs Carlotta Wamser from Bayer Leverkusen
Manchester City have moved again in the transfer market, sealing a four-year deal for Germany full-back Carlotta Wamser from Bayer Leverkusen.
The 22-year-old, comfortable on either flank, becomes City’s third major addition of the summer, following defender Niamh Charles from Chelsea and forward Beth Mead from Arsenal. It is a signing that feels less like a luxury and more like a necessity.
City open their WSL title defence at home to Birmingham City on Sunday with a growing injury list. Charles is among the absentees, joined on the sidelines by Grace Clinton, Vivianne Miedema, Jade Rose and Laura Wienroither. The champions needed depth. They have turned to one of Europe’s most highly regarded young full-backs.
Wamser joined Leverkusen from Eintracht Frankfurt on a free transfer in July 2025 and has risen quickly through the German ranks. She already has 14 senior caps, having come through the country’s youth system and helped Germany win the Under-17 European Championship in 2019.
Her first words in Manchester carried the conviction of a player who knows exactly why she is here.
"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. "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."
Inside the club, there is a clear sense that this is a long-term piece of business as much as an immediate fix. Director of football Therese Sjogran underlined that belief.
"We are delighted to welcome Carlotta to the club," she 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."
City now head into the new campaign with a fresh option on both sides of their defence, a player still at the start of her career but already hardened by international football. The champions have sent a clear signal: even with injuries biting, they intend to stay one step ahead.
