Fran Kirby: Chelsea striker 'does not know' her transfer fee

New Chelsea Ladies signing Fran Kirby says she "does not know" how much money the club paid to sign her from Reading.

The England striker's former club said the deal was a British women's record transfer fee - a claim Chelsea deny.

"Whether it was a record fee, I don't know," Kirby, 22, told BBC London. "I don't know any of the figures.

"I'm not here to worry about the money. There is some pressure, but that comes with playing for a top side. I've just got to make sure I'm playing well."

In contrast to Kirby's undisclosed fee, which was reported to be between £40,000 and £60,000, Liverpool have reached an agreement with Manchester City over the £49m transfer of Raheem Sterling, a deal which would make the 20-year-old winger the most expensive English player ever.

Asked if she thought women's transfers would ever attract that much money, Kirby added: "For the women's game, I wouldn't like to see that kind of money being splashed around, because I think it would change the game too much.

"But I think there are ways that it can develop and there is a lot more funding that can go into it.

"If you look at some clubs which aren't professional at the moment, they've got some players who are on £25 a week.

"How are you supposed to improve a player when they're travelling three hours a night to try to get to training and they're only getting £25 a week?

"But that's something the clubs need to work out and that's where comparing it to the men's game is so difficult, because there's so much money in the men's game."

Kirby, who Chelsea boss Emma Hayes has described as her side's "missing piece" as they search for a first piece of major silverware, could make her debut on Saturday against Sunderland.