The Barclays Women’s Super League is back but back-heeler extraordinaire Alessia Russo remains on the treatment table.
Manchester United's clash with Brighton on Sunday comes too soon for the 23-year-old who missed England's friendlies against USA and Czech Republic. A return to action is not far off, however, with United boss Marc Skinner impressed by the way Russo has dug into recovery.
“She's progressing really, really nicely and I've been really impressed by her attitude to this,” he said. "She's grown up massively and I'm so pleased with the way she's approached it, the way that she performs in training, so to have her back on the field (on Wednesday) morning with a smile on her face was a really nice thing."
United have made a perfect start to the season with two wins from two and still have several Lionesses to call upon despite Russo’s absence. Among them is Mary Earps, who captained Sarina Wiegman’s side for part of the goalless draw against Czech Republic and is yet to concede a goal in the BWSL this season.
“I’ve worked with Mary before at Leicester and Birmingham and as a coach against her, [but] I’ve never seen her so focused,” Skinner added. “That always impresses me with a player because she knows what she wants, how to do it. She is layers of focus at the moment and I’m so pleased and proud of her for what she’s doing.”
The tussle at Leigh Sports Village pits Maya Le Tissier against her old club as she looks to continue a flying start to her United career. Le Tissier bagged a brace on her debut against Reading and received congratulations from her former boss Hope Powell, who will not be so generous if her Brighton side are on the receiving end in front of the BBC cameras.
“I sent her a message after she scored saying well done and enjoy it,” said Powell, whose side sit on three points from their opening two matches. She's such a lovely kid, I just hope she has a terrible game on Sunday!”
High-flying Aston Villa open the weekend at home to West Ham United on Saturday, with Manchester City welcoming Leicester City in a battle between two sides looking to get off the mark for the campaign on Sunday.
Everton take on champions Chelsea, while Liverpool travel to Tottenham Hotspur before Reading round off the weekend live on Sky Sports against table toppers Arsenal.
To follow the action and sign up for The FA Player’s live Barclays FA Women’s Super League and Championship coverage visit https://faplayer.thefa.com/home/all
