The 18-year-old midfielder joined Chelsea’s Academy at the age of 15 and now extends her stay at the club until summer 2023 with a further one-year option available.

Charlotte Wardlaw made her senior debut back in November 2019 against Tottenham Hotspur in the Continental Tyres League Cup and has since made two further appearances for the Blues, against Charlton in the FA Cup in 2020 and London City Lionesses in last season’s FA Cup competition. The No.34 has an impressive international career to date, captaining England from Under-15s right through to the Under-19s.

Upon signing her contract, Wardlaw commented: ‘It’s amazing, I feel very proud of myself and I feel very honoured to be offered it.‘Sometimes I feel like I need to take a step back and truly look at what I’ve achieved because when you’re in it, you can sometimes forget how far you’ve come. I’m very grateful to be offered this and I’m very excited to finally be officially part of the team.’

Chelsea FC Women general manager,Paul Green commented on Wardlaw’s signing: ‘Charlotte is a great young player who is adaptable to play right-back or centre-midfield. She is developing really well and has proven that when called upon for the first team, she can perform at that level. As part of her future development, we’ll be looking to send her out on loan for the forthcoming season to ensure she gains valuable game time.

'We’re glad to sign Charlotte on her first professional contract and we look forward to seeing how she continues to develop over the coming years.’

Wardlaw’s announcement is the team’s second of the week, following the signing of Academy goalkeeper Emily Orman on Monday.