Emma Hayes on the mic ...
“What an unbelievable team I’ve got,” she tells Sky. “Lucky me! It was really emotional at the end of the game but I was man-marked by the cameraman so I didn’t get the chance to let loose with a few tears. For us it’s not just about building a team to compete, it’s about growing - and looking at a wall of six thousand fans today gave me so much joy.
“Some of the players have gone through really tough times with not playing. I have to dispel this misnomer that players aren’t happy when they don’t play - they have the ability to look after themselves and games start coming around and on days like this they know it’s absolutely worth it. We are family. These people are as close to me as my family. My entire staff deserve credit and the day as much as anyone.”
Sam Kerr speaks ...
“I think we’ve shown over the last few years that in the last few games of the season we’re a different team,” she tells Sky Sports. “It sounds bad but once you get knocked out of the Champions League, it is easier to be fresh and to prepare for games.
“I don’t think people realise but even when we were preparing for City away, we only had 12 hours to really look at that, and one training session. As disappointed as we were, after we got knocked out we then had two days off and it was back to business. Back to winning the FA Cup and the league. We had more time, that’s it.”
Magdalena Eriksson and Pernille Harder speak: The happy couple join Sky Sports presenter Caroline Barker and her pundits for a post-presentation chat, having lined up for Chelsea for the last time.
“The fans have been amazing, much more than we could expect,” says Harder. “It’s emotional but it also makes me happy to see them stay to support us both even though we ae leaving.”
Eriksson: “I think this is my favourite one [title] - the way we have done it this year. I don’t think any other team has used every single player in their squad like we have with the amount of games we have had. I think everyone has played their part, everyone has been important.
“I have been trying to live in denial [about leaving Chelsea] before the game - I didn’t want to think about it because it would be too much emotions for me. We still had a job to do today and that was the main thing but as soon as I was subbed off the emotions came out and I feel a bit overwhelmed and I don’t really know what to say.”
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Match report: Reading 0-3 Chelsea
Chelsea crowned WSL champions: “Guro Reiten starred for Chelsea, providing the assist for Sam Kerr and scoring herself, before Kerr added a third, as they consigned Reading to the Championship and earned a fourth successive title,” writes Suzanne Wrack from the Select Car Leasing Stadium.
More celebrations: While young Harry Hayes and some of his associates set about harvesting the ticker tape strewn all over the pitch, his mother and her older, female charges pose with the WSL trophy for photographers. Despite their relegation, Kelly Chambers and her Reading players have stayed out on the pitch for the trophy lift.
Guro Reiten speaks ...
“ I am so proud of everyone at this club,” she says in an interview with Sky Sports. “It has been a lot of hard work but days like today make it worth it. We’ve played so many games, you have to go again every third or fourth day. But we keep doing it again and again, digging deep, finding that special moment to win games. And yeah, we’re good!”
Chelsea receive their trophy
The presentation: Emma Hayes is first up on to the hastily erected podium to receive her medal and then waits on the step to greet each of her players as they step forward to get presented with theirs. There are a few thousand Chelsea fans in the stadium and each player is greeted with a loud roar. Magda Eriksson is last up, receiving a big hug and a kiss from Millie Bright. She lifts the league trophy off it’s plinth, accepts a hug from Emma Hayes, joins her teammates and hoists the silverware skywards!!!
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WSL results
Chelsea are champions, Manchester United runners-up and Arsenal have clung on to the third Champions League qualification spot on goal difference. Reading are relegated and Leicester survive.
Final day results
West Ham 2-2 Tottenham
Reading 0-3 Chelsea
Manchester City 3-2 Everton
Liverpool 0-1 Manchester United
Brighton 0-1 Leicester City
Arsenal 0-2 Aston Villa (L)
Contrasting scenes: While Chelsea’s players celebrate with their many travelling fans, their Reading counterparts are gathered in a huddle listening to an address from their manager, Kelly Chambers. She has worked at the club in one capacity or another for 20 years and on the current episode of Women’s Football Weekly, she is linked with the Tottenham job.
CHELSEA ARE CHAMPIONS!!!
Full-time: Reading 0-3 Chelsea The final whistle is blown at the Madejski Stadium, prompting celebrations from Chelsea’s players, who have won their fourth consecutive title. The players of Reading, by contrast, drop out of the WSL and face the uncertainty that comes with relegation.
GOAL! Reading 0-3 Chelsea (Kerr 88)
Kerr scores again! The Australian is played in behind again and advances on goal, strikes the right upright with her first effort and scores with the follow-up shot.
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Reading 0-2 Chelsea: Team captain Magdalena Eriksson takes her Chelsea bow after five years at the club, coming off to rapturous applause from the stands and pausing to hug several teammates on the her way back to the dugout. Along with her partner Pernille Harder, she’s almost certainly off to Bayern Munich.
GOAL! Brighton 0-1 Leicester City (Baker)
Down, down deeper and down for Reading: Ava Baker puts Leicester a goal up away at Brighton, hammering yet another nail into the lid of Reading’s relegation coffin.
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GOAL! Liverpool 0-1 Manchester United (Garcia 71)
Manchester United lead! Manchester United have broken the deadlock at PRenton Park, with Lucia Garcia coming off the bench to get between defenders and rifle home a bouncing ball with a left-footed drive inside the upright. It’s almost certainly too little too late in terms of United’s title tile but you wouldn’t know that from looking at Garcia’s celebrations.
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Reading 0-2 Chelsea: Pernille Harder raises both hands above her head to applaud Chelsea’s travelling fans as her number goes up and she leaves the field in her final game as a Chelsea player. This league title will mark the Dane’s seventh major trophy win in three years playing under Emma Hayes.
Manchester City 2-0 Everton: Lauren Hemp has odubled City’s lead at the Academy Stadium, which sits m ore or less adjacent to the Etihad Stadium. Everton’s Izzy Christiansen has just been substituted in her final match ahead of retirement and was given a warm round of applause from both sets of supporters.
Reading 0-0 Chelsea: Reading seem resigned to their fate and are offering little in the way of resistance in the face of vastly superior opposition. Another excellent ball into the box from Lauren James is put out for a corner, which is headed clear at the near post.
Reading 0-2 Chelsea: Playing her final game for Chelsea, Pernille Harder sticks out a leg but is unable to poke home another James cross into the Reading penalty area.
Arsenal 0-2 Aston Villa: Alisha Lehmann has doubled Villa’s lead at Arsenal.
West Ham 2-2 Tottenham Hotspur: Beth England makes it 12 goals in 12 games for Tottenham Hotspur with her second goal of the afternoon. The signing from Chelsea has been a massive success.
Manchester City 1-0 Everton: Bunny Shaw fires City ahead to bring them level on points with Arsenal in the battle for third place as things stand. It won’t be enough as Arsenal enjoy a significant advantage on goal difference.
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Reading 0-2 Chelsea: Reading’s defence decide it’s nap-time again as Lauren James curls a wonderful cross towards the far post from the right. There’s slightly too much zip on it and despite her best attempts to dart in behind, Sam Kerr can’t make contact to nod the ball home. James has been pinging the ball around like Andrea Pirlo or Glenn Hoddle in their pomp.
Play resumes: Our six games restart and as things stanmd, Chelsea will be crowned champions, Manchester United will have to settle for second place in the title race and Arsenal will take the last of the three Champions League spots that are up for grabs. Reading, barring a miraculous turnaround in fortunes, will be relegated and Leciester will survive.
WSL half-time scores
West Ham 2-1 Tottenham
Reading 0-2 Chelsea
Manchester City 0-0 Everton
Liverpool 0-0 Manchester United
Brighton 0-0 Leicester City
Arsenal 0-1 Aston Villa
Arsenal 0-1 Aston Villa: Deep in added time at the end of the first half, Rachel Daly has added another goal to a tally that will earn her the golden boot later this afternoon.
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Liverpool 0-0 Manchester United: A cross from the left and the ball sits up for MNikita Parris, who unleashes a shot on the volley. It’s a fine strike but in the Liverpool goal, Rachael Laws does superbly to claw the ball away.
West Ham 2-1 Tottenham Hotspur: West Ham have come from behind to lead Spurs in Dagenham, where Emma Snerle restored parity with a lovely curled effort. West Ham lead at half-time thanks to a Kit Graham own goal.
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GOAL! Reading 0-2 Chelsea (Reiten 41)
Chelsea double their lead! Some indecision in the Reading defence allows Guro Reiten to advance on goal with the ball at her feet. Grace Moloney advances and Reiten slots the ball through the goalkeeper’s legs.
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Reading 0-1 Chelsea: Chelsea continue to dominate and so breathtakingly haphazard is much of Reading’s defending, it’s amazing they’re not out of sight already. Erin Cuthbert tries her luck from long-range but her shot is blocked.
German football: Needing only to win their final game of the season at home to Mainz to wrestle the Bundesliga title from Bayern Munich’s grasp, Borussia Dortmund are well on their way to bottling the occasion and taking their place in the pantheon of sport’s greatest chokers. You can follow the action in that one with John Brewin …
West Ham 0-1 Tottenham Hotspur: In a game with no bearing on the important business of the day, Bethany England has fired Spurs ahead against West Ham at Victoria Road.
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Liverpool 0-0 Manchester United: For Manchester United, Nikita Parris sends a firm header goalwards but it’s straight at Rachael Laws, who clutches the ball to her chest.
Reading 0-1 Chelsea: Justine Vanhaevermaet has just messed up a decent opportunity to equalise for Reading, heading a few feet over the bar as she met a nicely crossed ball from the left. It’s been their best – and possibly only – chance of the game.
Liverpool 0-0 Manchester United: It remains scoreless at Prenton Park, where news of Chelsea’s opener will have reached the Manchester United technical area. If Chelsea win, United’s result against Liverpool is irrelevant.
GOAL! Reading 0-1 Chelsea (Kerr 18)
Chelsea lead! Guro Reiten finds a yard of space on the left flank and sends a cross arrowing into the Reading penalty area. Unmarked, Sam Kerr leaps to send a powerful header past Grace Moloney from six yards.
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Reading 0-0 Chelsea: It’s another let-off for Reading as their goalkeeper Grace Moloney does brilliantly to tip an Erin Cuthbert shot from close range on to her cross-bar following some superb one-touch build-up play from Chelsea.
Reading 0-0 Chelsea: Sam Kerr misses an absolutely sitter!!! In acres of space, Eve Perisset sent in a wonderful cross from the right, Kerr peeled off her marker and with the goal gaping, somehow side-footed over from six yards out. Scoring looked far easier and Reading’s marking in the build-up was atrocious. That’s a real let-off for the League’s bottom side.
Liverpool 0-0 Manchester United: With Manchester United on the attack down the left flank, Leah Galton swings a cross into the Liveprool penalty area. Rachael Laws leaps to pluck the ball from the sky before it can reach the far post.
Reading 0-0 Chelsea: Sam Kerr and Lauren James link up down the inside right, the Australian teeing up the Englishwoman for a shot from distance with a pass inside. James shoots high over the bar.
Brighton 0-0 Leicester City: Brighton have got off to a good start against Leicester City. Their Norwegian striker Elisabeth Terland shoots goalwards with an improvised and acrobatic back-heel that’s cleared by a defender.
Liverpool 0-0 Manchester United: There’s not a great deal to report from the opening minutes at Prenton Park. Manchester United are in the ascendency and Alessia Russo is looking predictably lively. She can’t quite connect properly with an Ella Toone pull-back from the byline and sends the ball wide.
Reading 0-0 Chelsea: Reading have lined up with a back five and are inviting Chelsea on to them in these very early stages. Sam Kerr is the victim of an early foul as she chases a ball from deep and is brought down by Deanna Cooper, who gets a yellow card. Nothing comes from the free-kick about 35 yards from goal. Cooper is on a yellow card after less than three minutes, which is not great when you’re up against one of the world’s best strikers.
Games on! Our six final day fixtures are under way!
Liverpool v Manchester United line-ups
Liverpool: Laws, Koivisto, Gemma Bonner, Matthews, Hinds, van de Sanden, Fahey, Holland, Nagano, Kearns, Stengel.
Subs: Robe, Roberts, Lundgaard, Humphrey, Daniels, Cumings, Kirby, Dowie, Taylor.
Manchester United: Earps, Batlle, Le Tissier, Turner, Blundell, Risa, Zelem, Parris, Toone, Galton, Russo.
Subs: Thomas, Ladd, Riviere, Naalsund, Garcia, Tounkara, Williams, Cascarino, Baggaley.
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Manchester City v Everton line-ups
Manchester City: Keating, Morgan, Houghton, Greenwood, Ouahabi, Hasegawa, Angeldal, Kelly, Castellanos, Hemp, Shaw.
Subs: Casparij, Coombs, Raso, Dahou.
Everton: Brosnan, Karen Holmgaard, Bjorn, Stenevik, Hope, Wheeler, Galli, Veje, Christiansen, Sorensen, Snoeijs.
Subs: Sevecke, Bennison, Ramsey, Maier, Clarke, Wilding.
Arsenal v Aston Villa line-ups
Arsenal: D’Angelo, Wubben-Moy, Beattie, Rafaelle, Maritz, Pelova, Maanum, Catley, McCabe, Taylor, Blackstenius.
Subs: Zinsberger, Marckese, Queiroz, Kuhl, Goldie, Doe, Godfrey, Agyemang, Reid.
Aston Villa: Hampton, Mayling, Corsie, Turner, Pacheco, Hanson, Staniforth, Allen, Brown, Rachel Daly, Lehmann.
Subs: Boye-Hlorkah, Leat, Magill.
West Ham v Tottenham Hotspur line-ups
West Ham: Arnold, Shimizu, Fisk, Parker, Tysiak, Asseyi, Brynjarsdottir, Hayashi, Denton, Snerle, Thestrup.
Subs: Smith, Evans, Atkinson, Longhurst, Cooke, Cissoko, Hillyerd, Houssein, Flannery.
Tottenham Hotspur: Spencer, Neville, Turner, Bartrip, Ale, Ildhusoy, Spence, James, Ayane, Graham, England.
Subs: Korpela, Harrop, Naz, Cho, Karczewska, Petzelberger, Percival, Iwabuchi, Summanen.
Reading v Chelsea line-ups
Reading: Moloney, Hendrix, Easther Kith, Evans, Cooper, Mitchell, Eikeland, Vanhaevermaet, Moore, Harries, Rose.
Subs: Wellings, Wade, Caldwell, Alexander, Poulter, Perry, Primmer, Troelsgaard Nielsen.
Chelsea: Berger, Perisset, Mjelde, Eriksson, Charles, Cuthbert, Ingle, James, Mosegaard-Harder, Reiten, Kerr.
Subs: Musovic, Carter, Leupolz, Svitkova, Fleming, Johanna Kaneryd, Kadeisha Buchanan, Abdullina, Cankovic.
Brighton v Leicester line-ups
Brighton: Walsh, Green, Bergsvand, Stott, Kullberg, Zigiotti Olme, Terland, Morse, Symonds, Lee, Robinson.
Subs: Pattinson, Visalli, Stefanovic, Sarri, Connolly, Carter, Victoria Williams, Jarvis, Startup.
Leicester: Leitzig, Bott, Howard, Plumptre, Nevin, Whelan, Goodwin, Tierney, Siemsen, Cain, Jones.
Subs: Lambourne, Eaton-Collins, Pike, Green, Purfield, O’Brien, Baker, Robinson, Reavill.
The battle to avoid the drop: “Whoever stays up out of Leicester and Reading, the achievement will be remarkable,” writes Sophier Downey. “The stakes could not be higher – Leicester travel to Brighton having to match Reading’s result; Reading must beat Chelsea and hope the Foxes falter.”
Exclusive: Coaching methods are failing to keep up with the rapidly increasing demands of women’s professional football, resulting in more hamstring injuries among top female players. Experts are calling for women to be trained at a higher level to prevent such injuries. Linda Geddes reports …
Women's Football Weekly podcast
Faye Carruthers is currently a nervous wreck and will be at Wembley later this evening to cheer on her beloved Luton Town in the men’s Championship play-off final. She was joined by award-winning author and Guardian women’s football correspondent Suzy Wrack, Tottenham Hotspur fan and Proud Lilywhite Chris Pauros, and England legend and recently appointed Arsenal assistant coach Kelly Smith to look ahead to a tantalising final weekend of WSL action. Listen here and subscribe for free on the usual pod platforms.
Today's permutations
The title race: Chelsea will retain their title if they beat Reading. They will also lift the trophy if they draw, unless Manchester United beat Liverpool by six or more goals. Even if Chelsea lose they can win the title if Manchester United don’t win. If Chelsea lose and Manchester United win, the title goes north to Marc Skinner’s team.
Champions League qualification: Chelsea and Manchester United are already guaranteed entry into the second round of next season’s competition. In third place in the table, Arsenal are odds-on to qualify for the first round of next season’s Champions League but can be overtaken if they lose against Aston Villa and Manchester City beat Everton by enough to come out on the right end of – author counts fingers and removes one sock – an 11-goal swing.
Relegation: To avoid relegation, Reading must beat Chelsea and hope Leicester lose against Brighton. If Leicester draw their game against Brighton, Reading would need to beat Chelsea by three goals to stay up on our old friend “Goals Scored”.
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WSL Golden Boot: Aston Villa striker Rachel Daly currently leads the standings with 21 goals, but it is not beyond the realms of possibility that she could be overtaken by Khadija “Bunny” Shaw, who trails her by three goals and will be hoping to fill her boots against Everton at the Academy Stadium.
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Today's WSL fixtures
West Ham v Tottenham
Reading v Chelsea
Manchester City v Everton
Liverpool v Manchester United
Brighton v Leicester City
Arsenal v Aston Villa
Big interview: Emma Hayes
The Chelsea manager has endured challenges on and off the pitch this season but her squad have timed their return to form perfectly. Suzy Wrack chats to the likeable Londoner with a penchant for loud touchline effing and jeffing about the personal medical issues that have blighted her season, the injuries that threatened to derail her team’s season and the focus on player welfare that has helped her squad hit their peak at exactly the right time this season.
Women's Super League - final day
After 126 matches, 423 goals, five-hat-tricks, 42 clean sheets, eight red cards, a record attendance of 47,367 and what seems like an inordinate number of anterior cruciate ligament injuries, today marks the end of the 2022-23 WSL season. All six games kick off at 2.30pm (BST) and there’s plenty to play for at both ends of the table.
In the box-seat, Chelsea travel to bottom side Reading and a win for Emma Hayes’s side will guarantee Chelsea their fourth consecutive title and complete their third league and FA Cup double on the spin. It would also condemn Reading to the Championship, which was won by a Bristol City side that guaranteed themselves promotion to the top flight a month ago.
Reading can still avoid the drop, but face a tall order. They have to beat Chelsea to give themselves a puncher’s chance of staying up and hope Leicester lose away at Brighton. Reading could also stay up if they win and Leicester draw, more of which anon. Further up the table, there’s a place in next season’s Champions League first round up for grabs. Arsenal currently sit in third place and can only be overtaken by Manchester City in preposterously unlikely circumstances.
