With her back to goal, Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw chests the ball, swivels and arrows it into the bottom corner beyond the reach of Chelsea’s Hannah Hampton. The Manchester City taliswoman then twirls her arm before knee sliding in front of the travelling fans.
“I trust myself and I know what I can do in and around the box,” she told TNT Sports after City’s 3-2 (aet) FA Cup semi-final triumph.
It is an unshakeable self-belief befitting of a world-class athlete. Not even, in her words via TNT, “a mad week” with “lots of ups and downs” can sway her confidence. On Wednesday, City were crowned Women’s Super League (WSL) champions. The next day, The Guardian reported the 29-year-old was set to leave her club of four years.
In April, The Athletic reported Chelsea have made Shaw a contract offer worth at least £1million ($1.36m) per year and, according to sources briefed on the matter who wished to remain anonymous to protect relations, negotiations with City have broken down over contract length.
On Sunday, Shaw showed why she is the most valued player in the women’s football market and the type Chelsea, who have significantly underperformed in front of goal, have needed.
On the halfway line at Stamford Bridge, Shaw lined up alongside opposite number Sam Kerr, whom she could replace in the summer. The Athletic reported in March the Australia international is expected to leave. But it was Kerr who was the livelier of the two at first, having two goals disallowed either side of doubling Chelsea’s lead in the 59th minute when she capitalised on Khiara Keating’s fumble.
Shaw had chances, too, but it was not quite clicking as she skied shots over the bar. A knock to her neck could have signalled it was not going to be her day. But the Jamaica international kept probing in dangerous areas. She had the most touches (15) in the opposition box and took the most shots (10).
With City trailing 2-1 and six minutes of stoppage time remaining, eventually it paid off. Her inner belief stayed resolute as she found the equaliser with a swivel, sending the tie to extra time.
Once again, the two-time WSL golden boot winner, soon to win the award for the third time, found herself in a goalscoring position but sliced her shot wide. At the next opportunity, she told herself to just put it in the back of the net. Thanks to Yui Hasegawa’s alertness to intercept Hampton’s goal kick, Shaw pounced and headed home, taking her team one step closer to Wembley.
“That is what we need the forward to do,” said City manager Andree Jeglertz. “To be the one that is creating chances, miss one, then move on and continue.”
Since her arrival in the WSL in 2021, no player has had a higher expected goals (xG) value (a measurement of the quality chances created) per 90 minutes (0.83), or goals per 90 minutes (1.07) than Shaw. Producing such high figures consistently, as shown by the graph below, is quite remarkable and points to her ability to sniff out chances.
She is clinical in front of goal, although her efficiency has dropped this WSL campaign with her goals tracking her expected goals total. Since the start of the 2021-22 season though, she has outperformed her xG by an average of 0.24 per game — only Kerr (0.25) and Chelsea team-mate Lauren James (0.27) have recorded higher figures over the same period.
It is not just her goalscoring threat that makes Shaw a much sought-after player but, as shown against Chelsea, her superior hold-up play, linking passes with team-mates to progress the ball, aggressiveness in the press, as well as defensive clearances, make her a complete striker. At 29, and in peak form, her next club could be her last. “Bunny Shaw, we’ll see you next year,” sang the Chelsea fans.
That may be premature with no final decision made, according to sources briefed on the matter, but Jeglertz seemed confident in City’s hierarchy ability to give him the arsenal he needs.
“Where we are in July, I don’t know,” he said post-match. “That’s not up to me. But I’m pretty sure no matter which player is in my squad in July, the club will definitely give me possibilities to win the title again. Who that is, we’ll see later on.”
Chelsea have struggled for a fit and available centre forward all season, with injuries to Mayra Ramirez and Aggie Beever-Jones, while Kerr, up until recently, has lacked gametime under Sonia Bompastor. “Who wouldn’t have her (Shaw) on a personal wish list?” said Bompastor on Friday.
Although Shaw, should she move to west London, will not solve all of Chelsea’s problems, she dealt them a killer blow, demonstrating a ruthless instinct they have lacked all season and exactly why Chelsea are keen to obtain her signature.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
Women’s Soccer, FA Cup
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