England forward Fran Kirby joins Brighton after leaving Chelsea

England international Fran Kirby has signed for Brighton after leaving Chelsea at the end of last season.

The 31-year-old spent nine years with Chelsea, scoring 116 goals in 208 appearances and winning the Women’s Super League seven times as well as five FA Cup successes.

Kirby has won 72 England caps, scoring 19 goals, and was part of the Lionesses squad which won Euro 2022 after beating Germany in the final at Wembley.

“I wanted to go somewhere where I could keep my standards up and help bring them into another club,” Kirby said on the Brighton website.

“I wanted to stay in this league because I still want to be competing week in week out. And as long as I can help a team progress, that’s what I want to do.

“When I spoke to the people at Brighton and they told me how behind (chairman) Tony Bloom is of the women’s game and how much they want to invest in it and push it forward and then seeing the facilities here, for me it was a really exciting opportunity and one I couldn’t really turn down.”

The Seagulls finished ninth in the WSL last season, after parting company with manager Melissa Phillips and bringing in interim boss Mikey Harris from the men’s academy.

Brighton managing director of women’s and girls’ football Zoe Johnson said: “We are absolutely thrilled to welcome Fran to the club.

“Her experience on the pitch will be just as important off it and we have no doubt that she will help us take a significant step towards our long-term targets.”