England fringe international, Rinsola Babajide has left Liverpool in a shock summer move to Brighton & Hove Albion, where she replaces Super Falcons’ striker, Ini Umotong, and quickly stated how delighted she is with the loan switch.
Megasportsarena.com reports that, despite the deal appearing to be a demotion for her, Rinsola, who emerged Liverpool FC Women Player of the Season in 2019/20 and previously played for England’s under-20 squad, said she is thrilled with the move.
Before making the move to take the place of Umotong at The Seagulls, Rinsola, who joined Liverpool in January 2018, after staring for Crystal Palace, Millwall Lionesses and Watford, was angling for a deal that would improve her chances of making her senior debut for England.
The deal comes exactly a year after Umotong left Brighton, which she joined in 2017 and then went on to score 19 goals in 59 appearances for The Seagulls, despite spending most of her time as a substitute.
Umotong also scored six goals in the season preceding her departure, including the winner that sent her team to the FA Cup quarter-finals for the first time since 1994, such that Rinsola has a huge scorecard she has to meet up to at the same club.
However, recent thrills with Liverpool tend to buoy the 23-year-old attacker, who was part of England’s team that placed third at the 2018 FIFA Women’s U20 World Cup and was invited to the senior squad’s camp last September.
Rinsola said after signing the dotted lines at American Express Stadium: “I’ve got aspirations to play international football and I think that Hope can push me to get to the very top.
“Knowing Hope’s success from when she was manager of England, she knows what it takes to play at the highest level.”
