West Ham United have sent two of their development squad out on loan to Aberdeen for the 2026/27 season, with goalkeeper Katie O’Hanlon and defender Selin Cemal both making the move north to the Scottish Women’s Premier League.
West Ham Pair Katie O’Hanlon And Selin Cemal Join Aberdeen
O’Hanlon’s move was confirmed at the end of July, with the 22-year-old goalkeeper joining Aberdeen for the full 2026/27 campaign. She came through West Ham’s Professional Game Academy after earlier spells with Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and Chelsea, and has already tasted senior football through previous loan spells at Hashtag United and Billericay Town.
Cemal followed her teammate to Cormack Park just days ago. The 19-year-old joined West Ham in 2025 after coming through the Chelsea and Arsenal academy systems, and made her senior debut in a League Cup tie against Charlton Athletic that September before going on to make four senior appearances in her breakthrough campaign.
Katie O’Hanlon Targets Regular Football Between The Posts
O’Hanlon’s task at Aberdeen is straightforward: get minutes. A season of regular senior football gives her the platform her loan spells at Hashtag and Billericay could only offer in shorter bursts, this time across a full SWPL campaign.
West Ham have kept her tied to the club throughout the loan, meaning the goalkeeper is due to return to east London once the season finishes.
Selin Cemal Set For Regular Senior Football At Aberdeen
Cemal arrives with plenty of promise attached. The young defender is a Turkey youth international and was praised by Aberdeen’s Head of Women’s and Girls’ Football Nathan Flight as a composed presence who reads the game well and organises those around her.
Aberdeen finished ninth in the SWPL last season, and both O’Hanlon and Cemal will be hoping to help push the Dons further up the table this time around while banking the kind of senior experience that speeds up their development back in London.
