Chris Brookes
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Chris Brookes
@chris-brookes.bsky.social
170 followers 29 following 480 posts
Men’s/women’s football writer. Editor: Her Goal (formerly known as She Kicks) magazine 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿. Ex-Boston Breakers (NWSL) ⚽️🇺🇸 media. SWFC 🦉 fan. Talking music with footballers on http://beatsandrhymesfc.com (since 2011)
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Chris Brookes @chris-brookes.bsky.social · Dec 30
Haven’t got going with Bluesky yet, but I started on women’s football in 2011, with player interviews on their life/career & music.

The features since have come from around the world, & there’s hundreds of stories on the site, through changing leagues/eras in the women’s game.

Some from this year:
chris-brookes.bsky.social Chris Brookes @chris-brookes.bsky.social · Nov 25
“I am definitely an old soul… I move at a slow pace, I love my ☕️ on the porch in the morning and I love books and newspapers.”

Some pre-Bluesky work from 2024.

🎶⚽️ feature with #USWNT’s Sam Coffey - so vintage that her cassette tape’s starting to skip:

beatsandrhymesfc.com/sam-coffey-i... #BAONPDX
USWNT midfielder Sam Coffey pictured during the pre-game national anthem. USWNT’s Sam Coffey with fellow Olympic gold medalist Jaedyn Shaw at Paris 2024.
chris-brookes.bsky.social
West Ham have signed 19-year-old defender Ria Bose 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 from Sporting CP 🇵🇹

The England Under-20 joins until summer 2028.

(📸 WHUFC) #BarclaysWSL #whufc
Ria Bose in a West Ham United shirt
January 14, 2026 at 4:00 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
The latest Norwegian in the #BarclaysWSL 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Liverpool have signed 24-year-old attacker Anna Jøsendal 🇳🇴 from Hammarby.

(📸 Nick Taylor/LFC) #lfcw
Anna Jøsendal pictured in a Liverpool shirt
January 9, 2026 at 4:00 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
London City Lionesses have appointed recent Newcastle United manager Becky Langley as assistant coach.

#BarclaysWSL #LCLionesses #NUWFC

📸 Nina Farooqi
Becky Langley in training with London City Lionesses
January 9, 2026 at 3:00 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
Brighton have signed 25-year-old midfielder Olaug Tvedten 🇳🇴 from Vålerenga.

#BarclaysWSL #bhafcwomen (📸 BHAFC)
January 8, 2026 at 4:01 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
West Ham’s Shekiera Martínez 🇩🇪 has won #BarclaysWSL Goal of the Month for her overhead kick v Manchester United.
Shekiera Martínez holds her award
January 8, 2026 at 1:25 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
Manchester City’s Andrée Jeglertz 🇸🇪 wins #BarclaysWSL Manager of the Month for the third time in a row.

#mcwfc
Andrée Jeglertz holding his monthly award
January 8, 2026 at 1:22 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
Manchester City’s Bunny Shaw 🇯🇲 is the #BarclaysWSL Player of the Month for December. 🔥

#mcwfc #reggaegirlz
Bunny Shaw holding her award
January 8, 2026 at 1:21 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
Please share ⚽️ Calling future Fran Kirbys 🚨

Junior players wanting to be in the UK’s longest-running women’s footy magazine, Her Goal (formerly She Kicks) is looking for participants in our Born Kicking Q&A.

📧 [email protected]

Be like this past interviewee👇 (it’s Fran Kirby btw…)
Fran Kirby featuring in Fair Game magazine as a ten-year-old
January 8, 2026 at 1:10 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
Sweden goalkeeper Jennifer Falk 🇸🇪 has signed for Liverpool on loan for the remainder of the season.

The 32-year-old moves overseas for the first time in her career, joining a relegation battle at the bottom side in the #BarclaysWSL. #LFCW

📸 Nick Taylor/LFC
Jennifer Falk holding a Liverpool shirt
January 7, 2026 at 5:00 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
Birmingham City have signed London City Lionesses’ Lotta Lindström 🇫🇮 on loan.

The 21-year-old joins the #BarclaysWSL2 promotion chasers for the rest of the season.

(📸 BCFC) #bcfcwomen #lclionesses #BarclaysWSL
Lotta Lindström in a Birmingham City shirt Lotta Lindström turns to show the back of her Birmingham City shirt with ‘Lindström 20’ on
January 7, 2026 at 12:00 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
🚨 MAGAZINE OPPORTUNITY (for junior footballers) - please share

Does your footy-mad youngster want to be in an issue of Her Goal magazine (previously known as She Kicks)?

To feature in our ‘Born Kicking’ Q&A, email: [email protected]
Front cover of Her Goal Magazine Issue 2, with Spurs’ Cathinka Tandberg as the main image.
January 6, 2026 at 1:42 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
“People came running into the gym - ‘Is everyone all right?’ 🚨

…I was like, ‘It’s just a good song!’”

The 🎶⚽️ story of Brighton forward Madison Haley. North Dallas 🇺🇸 to South Coast 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Our in-depth interview:

beatsandrhymesfc.com/madison-hale... #BarclaysWSL #BHAWFC (📸 Paul Hazlewood / #BHAFC)
Madison Haley in a Brighton shirt, sitting in a deckchair
December 24, 2025 at 6:06 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
“Australia was the only place I was eligible for, I thought… When I told my dad (about representing Greece), he just started crying, & I thought that was such a beautiful thing.”

Latest 🎶⚽️ feature, with Hibernian’s #SWPL champion 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Stacey Papadopoulos 🇦🇺🇬🇷

beatsandrhymesfc.com/stacey-papad... #Hibs
Stacey Papadopoulos celebrates with the SWPL trophy alongside Hibernian Women teammate Noa Schumacher.
December 4, 2025 at 5:39 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
New issue of @hergoalmagazine.bsky.social, featuring #SpursWomen forward & cover star 💫 Cathinka Tandberg 🇳🇴

100 pages on the women’s game, and we’ll celebrate 30 years in 2026.

Available now in supermarkets/other retailers and online here: womensfootballmagazine.com/product/her-... #thfc
Cover image of Her Goal magazine. Main image: Cathinka Tandberg in a Spurs shirt. Main text: It’s Tinka Time.
December 4, 2025 at 5:27 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
“Not being selected for the Euros was difficult… I came out of that experience hungrier than ever. It definitely gives me extra fire to prove myself.”

My feature with Sweden forward Evelyn Ijeh 🇸🇪🇳🇬

Music, #MilanFemminile 🇮🇹, Nigeria, #TigresFemenil 🇲🇽 & more:

beatsandrhymesfc.com/evelyn-ijeh-...
AC Milan / Evelyn Ijeh goal graphic Evelyn Ijeh has her tie adjusted while wearing an AC Milan club suit
November 27, 2025 at 6:59 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
“I’ve loved my Chelsea career so far & my life here in London... It feels like home. We spend every summer away from London, & then I’m like, ‘OK, I’m going home now.’”

My interview with Guro Reiten 🇳🇴 in this month’s @hergoalmagazine.bsky.social

🔑 womensfootballmagazine.com/product/her-... #cfcw
Front cover of Her Goal magazine. Main image: Guro Reiten in Chelsea shirt. Headline: Bluetopia - Guro Reiten & Chelsea’s love supreme. Other text: Remembering Matt Beard. London City Lionesses star Kosovare Asllani. PLUS: Fran Kirby talks transfers. Barça & Dortmund in focus.
November 11, 2025 at 4:01 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
ICYMI: October’s issue of the magazine (our last as She Kicks before the switch to @hergoalmagazine.bsky.social).

100 pages of women’s football, including our interview with cover star 💫 Man City & Spain’s Leila Ouahabi.

Get yours! 👇 womensfootballmagazine.com/product/she-... #mcwfc #BarclaysWSL
Front cover of She Kicks magazine (now known as Her Goal magazine) Issue 92, with Leila Ouahabi as the main image. Main text: Let There Be Leila - 1-on-1 with Man City & Spain’s Leila Ouahabi
October 27, 2025 at 3:52 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
“I feel more at home in Manchester, with the culture & the people. I think I’ve got a little bit of an accent as well, so I guess I’m becoming more (Manc)…”

My interview with #MUWomen striker Elisabeth Terland 🇳🇴 in October’s @hergoalmagazine.bsky.social

🔑 womensfootballmagazine.com/product/she-...
The top of the page from Elisabeth Terland’s interview in She Kicks magazine (now known as Her Goal magazine). Headline: Your defence is TERIfied (Teri is her nickname).
October 27, 2025 at 3:41 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
“I think I can be proud of myself the last five games (of last season); I just want to show I can do it through the whole season.”

My interview with Aston Villa’s Chasity Grant 🇳🇱 in this month’s @hergoalmagazine.bsky.social

Get yours: womensfootballmagazine.com/product/she-... #avwfc #BarclaysWSL
Screenshot from Chasity Grant’s She Kicks magazine interview. Headline: THRILLA FROM THE VILLA.
September 19, 2025 at 4:45 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
“I’m really hoping that I can bring more of a leadership role and really step up for Scotland.”

Back at Liverpool on a full deal, Sam Kerr 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 has clear ambitions for club & country.

Our interview in @hergoalmagazine.bsky.social

🔑 womensfootballmagazine.com/product/she-... #LFCW #BarclaysWSL #SWNT
Screenshot from Sam Kerr’s interview in She Kicks magazine. Headline: HELLO STRANGER!
September 19, 2025 at 4:29 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
“I’m so far from home, and I feel really at home here at Everton. It’s a great club that provides everything I need…so I wouldn’t leave.”

This month’s @hergoalmagazine.bsky.social, including my interview with #EvertonWomen & #Matildas’ Clare Wheeler 🇦🇺

🔑 womensfootballmagazine.com/product/she-...
Cover of She Kicks magazine with Everton’s Clare Wheeler as the main image. Headline: WHEELS UP FOR THE NEW SEASON! Everton’s Aussie midfielder Clare Wheeler. Other text: Liverpool’s Sam Kerr, Millie Bright gets Game Ready, Villa’s Chasity Grant, EURO 2025 re-lived: England’s Swisstory makers
September 19, 2025 at 4:14 PM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
Marc Skinner also confirms that there isn’t currently a 24-hour option to recall the loan players if #MUWomen had first-teamers become unavailable. #BarclaysWSL
chris-brookes.bsky.social Chris Brookes @chris-brookes.bsky.social · Sep 17
Manchester United boss Marc Skinner when I asked about #MUWomen squad depth and the decision to send players on loan (particularly Emma Watson to Crystal Palace, who’d been cited in the past as a big part of his plans).

United named 5 out of 9 available subs v Leicester recently. #BarclaysWSL
That one’s pretty simple for me. Emma missed the first year for an ACL that she got on a Scotland camp, so we didn’t have her for the first year. She then wanted to play football, because the only way she’s going to get better is by playing football. This year, I think that’s pretty selfish of us as a club, if we want to see her talent grow, to sit her on a bench and bring her in for moments of games, rather than actually let her have the opportunity. So, if you think about Emma, and by the way, this is Emma’s choice as well, Emma wants to go out and play because she wants to play for Manchester United. It’s a pretty simple one for me. I think – and I’m with the fans when I echo their sentiment – that I think in the winter window, we need to do work, because I think we need to add to this already-super-talented squad, but we need more depth, in high quality… in certain areas. So, I’m with that. And I must stress, on the other side of that, though, I can’t do anything until January, so now, my sole focus is on getting the very best of these players and giving them the right rest, recovery, so we don’t risk injury, while also trying to get the rotation right. So, forgive me if I don’t talk about it any more, because I understand it, but I can’t do anything about it, apart from behind the scenes try and recruit the players ready for winter window, and that’s what I’m doing; I haven’t stopped. So, just to be clear, Emma Watson wanted to go out, it’s the right decision for her. Even Jess Simpson, so on, it’s right for them, and hopefully, we can get through to that window without too many injuries. That’s going to be key, I’ve no doubt about it.”
September 17, 2025 at 9:21 AM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
Also asked Marc Skinner how close #MUWomen youngsters are to properly breaking through.

And if he’d see it as a failure if he doesn’t bring homegrown players through.

“We have this fantasy that because they’re homegrown they can come straight in and play.” #BarclaysWSL
“The reality is, and I think I’m pretty good at this, is knowing when they’re ready. We have this fantasy that because they’re homegrown they can come straight in and play. Well, ask the other teams exactly the same question. They have to be ready, because the thing is – and this is what people don’t understand – if you don’t get that timing right, you damage a player. It’s not about the team, it’s about damaging the player’s psychology, so they don’t feel they’re ready then. I know, by the conversations I have with the psychology team, we have a team that looks after our loanee players, that call them every month to make sure they’re checking in, ‘Do they need anything?’ So, we have absolute care for our… players, but if they’re not ready, and that is the job of me to understand whether they’re ready. They also have to be better than the players that are in the team, because otherwise, I’m replacing a homegrown player with a player that’s already better than them. So, we have to be very careful in the way that we discuss that, a player’s future, but let me be clear, when they are ready, they will play, and that is the final answer on that.”
September 17, 2025 at 9:17 AM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
Manchester United boss Marc Skinner when I asked about #MUWomen squad depth and the decision to send players on loan (particularly Emma Watson to Crystal Palace, who’d been cited in the past as a big part of his plans).

United named 5 out of 9 available subs v Leicester recently. #BarclaysWSL
That one’s pretty simple for me. Emma missed the first year for an ACL that she got on a Scotland camp, so we didn’t have her for the first year. She then wanted to play football, because the only way she’s going to get better is by playing football. This year, I think that’s pretty selfish of us as a club, if we want to see her talent grow, to sit her on a bench and bring her in for moments of games, rather than actually let her have the opportunity. So, if you think about Emma, and by the way, this is Emma’s choice as well, Emma wants to go out and play because she wants to play for Manchester United. It’s a pretty simple one for me. I think – and I’m with the fans when I echo their sentiment – that I think in the winter window, we need to do work, because I think we need to add to this already-super-talented squad, but we need more depth, in high quality… in certain areas. So, I’m with that. And I must stress, on the other side of that, though, I can’t do anything until January, so now, my sole focus is on getting the very best of these players and giving them the right rest, recovery, so we don’t risk injury, while also trying to get the rotation right. So, forgive me if I don’t talk about it any more, because I understand it, but I can’t do anything about it, apart from behind the scenes try and recruit the players ready for winter window, and that’s what I’m doing; I haven’t stopped. So, just to be clear, Emma Watson wanted to go out, it’s the right decision for her. Even Jess Simpson, so on, it’s right for them, and hopefully, we can get through to that window without too many injuries. That’s going to be key, I’ve no doubt about it.”
September 17, 2025 at 9:12 AM
chris-brookes.bsky.social
Asked new #SpursWomen boss Martin Ho how they become enjoyable to watch this season.

Could it come from Matilda Vinberg/Araya Dennis playing bigger roles?

“You have to allow players to take risks & be brave… We will risk the ball at times, we’ll be more aggressive on the front foot.”

#BarclaysWSL
Martin Ho holding a Spurs shirt I want the team to look exciting. I want to be able to stand and watch my own team and feel the energy and feel the passion, and kick and head every ball with them. Yes, the team’s going to be exciting. I think what you have to do is you have to allow players to take risks and be brave, and we have to support that, which we will. I want the team to be exciting and we will be. We will risk the ball at times, we’ll be more aggressive on the front foot in terms of how we press the game, but some of the players you’ve mentioned there, I’ve seen a big shift in their confidence and belief, more importantly. The likes of Matilda Vinberg has looked brilliant for us in pre-season and she’s done exceptionally well… Araya Dennis has trained really well all week, she’s trained well in pre-season, she’s been patient. She’s had the opportunities when they’ve come, and Araya just needs a little bit of guidance and a little bit more coaching.
September 6, 2025 at 6:13 PM