Scott Phelan has expressed his excitement for the upcoming season as he continues to rebuild Everton Women following his permanent appointment as head coach. The 38-year-old took the role permanently in June and has since made seven new signings.
New signings and key returnee
While the new faces had their first outing in a friendly win in Hamburg on Saturday, the return to fitness of captain Megan Finnigan could prove crucial. Finnigan missed all of last season due to an ACL injury sustained in January 2025.
Phelan, who took over from Brian Sorensen on a temporary basis in February, led the team to three consecutive wins and an eighth-placed finish in the Women's Super League. He described his start as a "dream start" and is keen to build on that momentum.
Recruitment strategy
The new signings include Noémie Mouchon, Hannah Cain, Holly McNamara, Jutta Rantala, Zara Kramžar, Hannah Blundell, and Naomi Layzell on loan from Manchester City. Phelan outlined the vision behind the recruitment: "The vision is to have really good players, ideally, of a good age that can continue to develop with the team and grow, step-by-step, in their own individual journeys, but also collectively, and push Everton higher up the league."
He added: "There's so much scope in the players we have brought in, so much development left in them, and we're really looking forward to getting the work done on the training pitch, and seeing that through on a matchday."
Pre-season opener
Everton's first pre-season match ended in a 1-0 win over Hamburg, with a long-range strike from Ornella Vignola, who scored a hat-trick in last season's Merseyside derby win at Anfield. Phelan noted areas for improvement: "We had some control in the game. I thought we were a little bit toothless at times through the attacking phase so that is something for us to work on."
He also praised the team's effort: "For the first game of pre-season, we couldn't have asked for more in terms of application, heart and we can build the football on that and hopefully make that better."
Finnigan's return
Everton finished the match with 10 players as Phelan chose not to bring on Finnigan, who was back in the matchday squad for the first time since her injury. Phelan highlighted her importance: "She's had a real unfortunate time over the last 18 months or so, and just to have her presence around the group, seeing her now more active on a training pitch is a real boost for everybody. She's important for the changing room. She understands Everton's standards and the culture and the behaviours that we expect naturally."
