Océane Hurtré is lighting up the WSL in Birmingham City colours and is already threatening to make history. Are we potentially about to see one of the league’s best debut seasons ever?
Birmingham City may be languishing near the foot of the WSL table, but one player has given their campaign a very different complexion.
At just 22, Lauren Hemp lead the WSL with four shots apiece following fast breaks, while Hurtré has also registered the joint-most shot-ending carries (11) across Europe’s top five leagues.
More striking still, Hurtré leads the WSL outright for goal-ending carries with four. Across Europe’s top five leagues, only Barcelona’s Claudia Pina matches that total. These are not merely statistics that speak to her speed; they point to a player establishing herself among the world’s most dangerous players.
Among WSL forwards, only Hemp (78) has completed more progressive carries (in-possession movements taking the ball at least five metres upfield) than Hurtré (58), while her average carry distance of 14.6 metres puts her third among forwards, highlighting how she can propel her side up the pitch and out of pressure, a defining feature of her game so far in the top flight.
Her threat is not confined to transition, though. Hurtré has delivered 35 open-play crosses, the second most in the WSL. That breadth of contribution makes her more than a counter-attacking outlet: she can also provide service from wide areas and stretch opposing defences.
Ruthless in Front of Goal
For all her ability to carry the ball, it is Hurtré’s finishing that has really grabbed the headlines. She has six goals from 2.68 expected goals (xG), with only Victoria Pelova (+3.39) overperforming in relation to xG by a greater degree in the WSL this season than Hurtré (+3.32).
Such a level of overperformance highlights the standard of Hurtré’s finishing this season, converting chances that would typically be difficult to score from. Unsurprisingly, then, her goals per 90 is through the roof.
The winger’s output is especially remarkable given how little time she spends in the penalty area. Hurtré has recorded just 20 touches in the opposition’s box, ranking 33rd in the WSL. Yet she has produced more goals than almost anyone in the division, reflecting how clinical she’s been.
Hurtré has accounted for 75% of Birmingham goals output (6/8), 42.8% (2.68) of their xG and 45.5% of their shots on target. It remains to be seen just how sustainable her form is, but for now, these figures show how heavily the Blues are relying on her in the final third.
Birmingham’s direct speed, a measure of how quickly a team advances the ball towards the opposition’s goal, stands at 2.04 metres per second, the fastest in the WSL this season. Their passing sequences have also become slightly shorter and quicker, reinforcing the shift towards a more direct approach.
Hurtré sits at the heart of that, giving Birmingham a way to bypass midfield pressure, attack space and make limited possession count. The fact Birmingham have the joint-most goals (three) following high turnovers and all of them have been scored by Hurtré is evidence of her effectiveness in this respect.
A Debut Campaign for the History Books?
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