Battle for England World Cup places
In the January transfer window, several players have engineered moves in search of regular playing time before the World Cup in July. Beth England’s decision to leave Chelsea for Tottenham, for a record fee between two WSL clubs, will not have been made lightly, but with her game time squeezed at Chelsea and competition for places up front in Sarina Wiegman’s England squad for the World Cup increasing, the move makes sense. England’s move was followed by that of her international teammate Jordan Nobbs, whose career has been blighted by injury to the extent that she has played only one match at a major tournament for England, at the World Cup in 2015. At 30, her move to Aston Villa after 12 years at Arsenal is likely one more roll of the dice. Lucy Staniforth’s switch from Manchester United to Villa is another example of the Villa manager Carla Ward’s astute plan to capitalise on the stacked squads of the top WSL sides. The season resumes on Saturday lunchtime with Villa’s home game against Spurs.
Four into three won’t go
Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City are in the hunt for three spots in the Champions League. Arsenal host Chelsea on Sunday in a game that will probably see the winner labelled title favourites, but the season is far from over. Arsenal have been the busiest of the four teams in the transfer window, having lost Vivianne Miedema and Beth Mead to ACL injuries, and made the Canada goalkeeper Sabrina D’Angelo their latest signing on Friday, but Jonas Eidevall’s side have to play the three teams around them five times in the second half of the WSL campaign while competing in three cup competitions. Chelsea and City play four games each against the other top-four sides. The dark horse to win a trophy – a cup or even the league – could be United. Marc Skinner’s side host City and Arsenal and face a tricky trip to Chelsea but they took four points from the three reverse fixtures and don’t have Champions League games stretching the squad like Arsenal and Chelsea.
Kirk eyes miracle recovery
At the bottom things are far less tight. Leicester’s manager, Willie Kirk, who replaced Lydia Bedford in November, has the unenviable or nigh-on impossible job of saving the pointless Foxes from relegation. Leicester have scored two league goals and conceded 25 but put an 8-0 defeat by Chelsea behind them to beat Sunderland 5-0 before the winter break in the League Cup group stage. The Midlands side are seven points below Brighton and Reading, the former having played a game fewer and the latter a game more. Why is a fairly nonexistent relegation battle worth keeping an eye on? Because if Kirk lifts Leicester off bottom it will be one of the most remarkable achievements in the league’s history.
Will all the managers survive?
We saw two managerial changes in the first half of the campaign, with Hope Powell leaving Brighton after a disappointing start and Bedford ditched, but could there be more? The managerial merry-go-round in women’s football is a relatively new phenomenon; more money in the game means results matter more and so the pressure is greater. More change is unlikely but if Tottenham do not shift out of their goalscoring slump after signing England then Rehanne Skinner could find herself under the microscope. Spurs have injuries aplenty, with Ria Percival, Kyah Simon, Ellie Brazil and Kit Graham out with ACL ruptures, which may ease the pressure a little, but they have gone into the January window armed with that knowledge. Is England’s arrival and the recall of Esther Morgan enough or will we see more action?
Young players impressing
A number of young players made a mark before the break. Most notably, Chelsea’s Lauren James has impressed when unleashed more regularly by Emma Hayes. The forward has often been touted as one of the most naturally gifted English players around, and now we are seeing that talent tested against the best. Manchester United’s centre-back Maya Le Tissier received her first senior England call-up before Christmas and has become an instant mainstay at her club after moving from Brighton. Surprisingly, she has chipped in with some goals too.
