Fara Williams has joined Arsenal Ladies from Liverpool. The 31-year-old central midfielder, who with 148 caps is England’s record appearance holder, wrote on Twitter that she had signed for “the next two years”.

The transfer comes shortly after the player was awarded an MBE in the New Year Honours list, largely for being central to England finishing third at the 2015 World Cup.

“Fara is a great competitor and a fantastic character, too”, the Arsenal manager, Pedro Martínez Losa, told the club’s website. “She is a player with huge experience at club and international level, and her reading and understanding of games is fantastic.”

Williams won the FA Women’s Super League with Liverpool in 2013 and 2014, and has played for Chelsea, Charlton and Everton.