Alex Brooks joins Wolverhampton Wanderers from Blackburn | OneFootball

Wolverhampton Wanderers have signed goalkeeper Alex Brooks from Blackburn Rovers.

The capture of Brooks, 30, marks the successful culmination of a summer-long pursuit by Wolves manager Dan McNamara, who has hailed the former Manchester City stopper as a statement signing.

Wolves narrowly missed out on promotion to Women’s Super League 2 last season, finishing just three points shy of unbeaten Women’s Premier Division North champions Nottingham Forest.

There was uproar in the dressing room following the final game of the season after it emerged that the second-placed club had not applied to compete in WSL2, effectively rendering the players’ efforts meaningless.

But Wolves have since vowed to apply for a second-tier licence, and McNamara believes Brooks will bring vital experience to what remains a relatively young side.

What did Wolves boss Dan McNamara say about the signing of Alex Brooks?

“She was one of the first people we went after over the summer and it’s felt like a long wait, but we’re delighted to finally get her over the line,” said McNamara.

“Sometimes you have to wait for the big players. She feels Wolves is the right club for the next stage of her journey, and it’s a bit of a statement signing for us to bring a keeper of that ilk, with such good Championship experience.

“Experience is a big part of what she’ll bring, because we’re a very inexperienced group with regards to age, but we’ve got a lot of experience in regard to what the group have done over the last few years.”

Brooks rose through the youth ranks at City before signing her first professional contract with the club at the age of 20. First-team opportunities proved hard to come by, however, and a loan move to Everton followed before she departed City for Sheffield United in 2018.

The following year brought a return to the WSL with Birmingham City, where Brooks vied with Hannah Hampton, the heroine of England’s Euro 2025 triumph, for a place between the sticks.

Quality and big-game knowhow

But it was at Blackburn, for whom she made 74 appearances following her arrival in 2020, that she would forge her reputation in earnest.

Brooks was named player of the season by her Blackburn team-mates last summer, but the club’s decision to withdraw from WSL2 over a reluctance to meet licence criteria made a move inevitable.

McNamara is just grateful that she has found her way to the Black Country.

“She’ll bring not only the quality with regards to goalkeeping prowess, but also the knowhow in big games,” he said of Brooks’ signing by Wolves.

“Hopefully she can bring some of that to the group and help us achieve our aims this year.”