England goalkeeper Mary Earps has decided to leave Manchester United and is on the verge of signing for Paris Saint-Germain.
Earps, who joined United in 2019, is out of contract and will be able to sign for the French club on a free transfer after rejecting the offer of a new deal with the Red Devils.
The 31-year-old won the FIFA Best goalkeeper award for a second year running in January and finished fifth in last year’s Ballon d’Or – the highest ever ranking for a non-outfield player.
Mail Sport understands United believe they made a strong offer to keep Earps, but the goalkeeper has decided to take up a new challenge abroad.
The move is understood to be close, with some moving parts still to be ironed out. French clubs are allowed to have 10 non-EU players in their squad but only three on match days. PSG currently have four non-EU players, though reports have suggested one of those players – Tabitha Chawingai – could join Lyon this summer.
Mary Earps has decided to leave Man United and is set to join PSG on a free transfer
The England goalkeeper has rejected a new contract at United to move abroad
It is understood Earps was keen on a move away from United last season but the club insisted she was not for sale at any price.
The goalkeeper switched agents in January to A&V Sports, who represent stars like Sam Kerr and Ada Hegerberg and have a track record for getting big deals over the line.
Earps has repeatedly spoken about her desire to play at the highest level and United’s failure to qualify for the Champions League will likely have played a role in her decision to leave the club.
United slumped to their worst ever finish in the Women’s Super League last season and it is understood Earps will not be the only player to leave the club this summer.
Lucia Garcia and Nikita Parris, who are also out of contract, are expected to depart while more could follow.
It leaves boss Marc Skinner, who signed a new one-year contract at the end of last season, with a sizeable re-building job ahead of the new campaign.
United’s co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe admitted in an interview with Bloomberg last week that INEOS’ plans for the women’s team were still ‘TBC’.
Phallon-Tullis Joyce, who joined United last summer, is set to takeover from Earps as the club’s new No 1 while youngster Safia Middleton-Patel will also push for a place.
