Katie Leigh Zelem is an English footballer who plays as a midfielder for Manchester United.
Katie Leigh Zelem (born 20 January 1996) is an English footballer who plays as a midfielder for Manchester United. She has also represented England at youth levels.
| When was Katie Zelem born? | 20 January 1996 |
| How old is Katie Zelem in 2019? | 23 years |
| Zodiac sign: | Aquarius |
Club career:
Youth career:
Zelem started playing football when she was six. Her father, former Macclesfield goalkeeper Alan Zelem, had a big role in her early career. At the age of eight, she joined Manchester United Girls’ Centre of Excellence.
Her youth coach Emma Fletcher said Zelem showed a great attitude and appetite for learning and understanding the game.
Liverpool:
Matt Beard, Liverpool Ladies’ coach offered Zelem her first professional contract in 2013. Zelem was scouted as an attacking midfielder with two good feet, who can pick a pass out and finish as well. She was in the Liverpool squad for the first time on 8 August 2013, when Liverpool lost 0–1 to Arsenal Ladies but she did not play.
Her senior team debut came, on 29 June 2014, against Arsenal Ladies after recovering from a broken collarbone earlier that year. Zelem played 58 minutes before being replaced by Nina Pedersen. A week later, Zelem scored her first senior goal in a Continental Cup match against Durham Women’s F.C. in which her side won 7–1.
She scored two goals, both of them headers assisted by Lucy Bronze. In 2014, Zelem was nominated for the WSL Development Player of the Year alongside Carla Humphrey and Natasha Baptiste by the FA.
Juventus:
In August 2017 she moved to Juventus for an undisclosed fee. On September 30, Zelem made her first appearance as a substitute in the club’s inaugural match, a 3–0 win at Atalanta and scored her first goal three weeks later in a 4–1 win against Empoli. The club won the Serie A title in their first ever season in existence. Zelem left at the end of the campaign.
Manchester United:
In July 2018, Zelem joined Manchester United for their inaugural season in the FA Women’s Championship for the 2018–19 season, one of seven players to return to the senior side having played for the club at youth level.
https://twitter.com/katiezel/status/1126784170599026688
On 9 September, she scored her first goal for United from the penalty spot in the opening game of the 2018–19 FA Women’s Championship season, a 12–0 win away to Aston Villa. Zelem was voted FA Women’s Championship Player of the Month for March 2019.
International career:
Zelem made her youth debut for England as she played in a dual-game versus the Netherlands in March 2010, scoring her debut goal in the same game.
She represented England at the 2014 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Canada. Coached by Mo Marley, Zelem was used as the playmaker of England’s midfield. After drawing with South Korea and Mexico, England failed to progress to the knock-out stage after being defeated by eventual finalists Nigeria 2–1 in the final group game.
Personal life:
Zelem greatly admired Fara Williams, who became her role model in developing the game as a midfielder. Zelem considered herself fortunate that she can learn and play along with a hard-working figure like Williams. Beard also praised Zelem, likening her to Frank Lampard and stating she has a great career in the future.
Speaking in 2014, Martha Harris, Zelem’s best friend, and Liverpool teammate rated Zelem as “a very cheeky player clever on the pitch but is also a risk taker”
Katie is the niece of former professional footballer Peter Zelem.
Honours:
Club
Liverpool
- FA Women’s Super League: 2013, 2014
Juventus
- Serie A: 2017–18
Manchester United
- FA Women’s Championship: 2018–19
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