In the last weekend of action before the international break, there was a concerted push from all teams to make sure they left their clubs in the best possible position before the October pause.
In the Women’s Super League, Lauren Hemp‘s heroics helped Manchester City come from behind against a winless Aston Villa on the same day Chelsea claimed a 5-2 win over Tottenham Hotspur. Arsenal, under the steady hand of interim boss Reneé Slegers, left it late to claim a win over West Ham United.
Elsewhere, Nikita Parris was back to haunt her former team and help Brighton & Hove Albion to a meaningful draw against Manchester United while Liverpool fell to another draw, this time against Crystal Palace.
On the continent, both Juventus and Lyon dropped their first points of the season, to Inter Milan and Paris FC respectively, as Eintracht Frankfurt also suffered their first loss, at the hands of Werder Bremen.
Sunday also brought about plenty of drama with both Fiorentina and Bayern Munich coming out on top of 3-2 games, the La Viola downing Lazio before the Bavarians saw off a bright Bayer Leverkusen team. And in Spain, Atlético Madrid continued their near-perfect start to the season with a win over Real Sociedad while Barcelona kept up their actual perfect start by beating Levante 4-1.
Chelsea still a winning machine
Sonia Bompastor continued her perfect start to life in the WSL and remains unbeaten heading into the international break. Tottenham netted a peculiar ‘ghost goal’ of an equaliser that goalkeeper Hannah Hampton insisted didn’t cross the line, almost derailing their run of form; however, the Blues responded to secure a 5-2 victory. The French manager questioned the lack of goal-line technology in the league following the contested goal.
The Blues’ fourth in as many games makes them the only side with a 100% record, and still with a game in hand. Their run extends to six wins from six if you include the wins over Real Madrid and FC Twente in the UEFA Women’s Champions League.
While there are still areas for improvement, Chelsea are showing they know what it takes to win, regardless if it is not entirely pretty. Such a strong start to the season provides a perfect base for the team, who may naturally dip after the international break as fatigue sets in. Grinding out wins from rocky performances will be essential as the Blues look for their sixth consecutive WSL title and hope to make it to the Champions League final for the first time since 2021. — Emily Keogh
Arsenal back on track
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Arsenal ease past West Ham in the WSL
Mariona Caldentey and Rosa Kafaji give Arsenal a 2-0 win over West Ham in the WSL.
Arsenal secured their first WSL win without former manager Jonas Eidevall, who resigned last Monday after consecutive losses to Bayern Munich and Chelsea. Interim boss Renée Slegers took charge, leading the side to a 2-0 victory over West Ham United; however, it was not a convincing performance until the second half. Slegers has already excised one of the team’s biggest demons, though, as the previous two trips to West Ham yielded a loss and a draw.
This is only their second win of the season. After claiming eight points in five games, Arsenal are fifth in the WSL table and second in their Champions League group following their 4-1 win over Valerenga midweek, Slegers’ first game in charge. Despite a turbulent week, the team responded well with back-to-back wins.
The international break provides a welcome rest from club football. However, their first game back — a visit to Manchester United, who are unbeaten in the league — will stretch and test them. It does not give the side much time to fix errors before facing another title rival who will also look to capitalise on exploiting Arsenal’s shaky defence and poor form in front of goal. — EK
Atleti’s lack of identity may haunt them
It’s been a turbulent few years for former Spanish champions Atlético Madrid, with a clear lack of style and identity playing a key role in their continued mediocrity.
Having appointed Victor Martín over the summer, the Rojiblancas may have been hoping for a firmer sense of self, but they’ve continued to be muddled under their new coach. At home an equally pedestrian Real Sociedad on Saturday, Rosa Otermín‘s first-half strike was enough for a 1-0 win in a very even game which took the side from the capital top of Liga F.
With six wins and a draw (against Real Madrid the previous weekend), maybe the criticism is unwarranted; Martín’s version of Atleti has gotten good at getting over the line in games, and doing what’s needed to pick up points.
Following a raft of departures over the summer, it’s no easy thing to keep winning but, for a team that has been lost in a quagmire of prosaic football for a number of years, a clear sense of identity would only help to lift the entire level of the team and help drive the best out of the talent in the squad. — Sophie Lawson
Quick hits
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Hemp stars as Man City come from behind to beat Aston Villa
Man City remain unbeaten in the WSL after a 2-1 win against Aston Villa.
TEN. Nikita Parris, come on down. A player scoring against their former team is always a notable event in football and on Saturday, in her first meeting with United since leaving the Red Devils for Brighton, Parris did just that, sending home the equaliser in the 1-1 draw. As well as earning her side a point, the attacker’s heat map was broad, as she chased the ball across every blade of grass and helped break the United press. Parris is a known quantity in England, and during her last year in Manchester enjoyed a stark return to form, but has remained left out in the cold by national team boss Sarina Wiegman. Maybe the curtain has already dropped on her England career, but her form is demanding attention.
NINE. Lauren Hemp to the rescue. For the third game on the spin, Manchester City came from behind to claim all three points — this time against Aston Villa. All over the visitors, with 72% possession and six times as many shots, it would have been bizarre had City not won, but we’ve seen that side of them over the years. However, there can be no question of the fight in the team who only missed out on the WSL title last season on the last day. Hemp, who has become so very reliable for City, was the star for the hosts scoring a dazzling flicked goal before setting up Jill Roord for the winner. The 24-year-old Lioness is the embodiment of where there’s a will, there’s a way.
EIGHT. Juventus stumble. Rather than bouncing back after a midweek loss to Bayern Munich, the Bianconere ended up dropping their first points of the season in a scoreless draw away to Inter Milan. What can be said about Massimiliano Canzi’s Juventus is their consistency of style, but in Milan (as in Bavaria) the team couldn’t finish their chances. For Inter, who were on the back foot all first half, the second bore more attacking fruit but, for a team looking at the top two, the Nerazzurre also just never looked like scoring. Arguably, more shooting practice for both sides is needed.
SEVEN. Foxes’ first win. Five games in and Leicester City are finally up and running for the season thanks to Yuka Momiki‘s eighth-minute strike against a luckless Everton. It’s still early days into Amandine Miquel’s tenure at the helm of Leicester, but for a manager who impressed during her time with Stade de Reims, things haven’t quite had the same lustre in WSL. The Foxes are too often flat in attack, rather than leaning into the natural flair of the players available — although the first league win should have the team feeling confident heading into the international break.
SIX. Sakina Karchaoui‘s versatility. It’s no secret that, since her move to Paris Saint-Germain in 2021, Karchaoui has been playing the best football of her career. However, this season, beyond her usual left-back role, we’ve seen the defender deployed in an interior midfield role as well as at left-wing by Fabrice Abriel (after time spent at wing-back under Jocelyn Prêcheur last season). And Karchaoui has taken to each different position with ease, still running the channels each game and popping up with key interventions in both boxes as she did in PSG’s 2-1 win over Fleury, first firing in the winner before clearing a certain equaliser later in the game.
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Liverpool and Crystal Palace share the points after 1-1 draw.
Liverpool and Crystal Palace share the points after 1-1 draw Katie Stengel scores her first goal for Crystal Palace against former club Liverpool in an entertaining draw in the WSL
FIVE. Liverpool draw. Again. One thing the Reds won’t be short on this season is storage space, thanks to all the draws they’ve amassed so far this term, and it should be a growing concern with the team not able to really harness their best attacking threats. Against an improving Cystal Palace, there was something a little blunt about how the Liverpool forward line went about trying to dig out a winner with the team once again lacking bite where it matters most, before settling for their third 1-1 of the season.
FOUR. Sophie Weidauer’s contender for goal of the season. The pinpoint cross-field ball from Tuana Mahmoud, the deft arced finish from range from Weidauer, the glorious one-two punch on the counter after a forgettable Eintracht Frankfurt corner. It was a superb way to win a game from one of the Frauen-Bundesliga’s long-term also rans. But it was a well-executed gameplan from the Werder Bremen, who kept things tight at the back whilst staying sharp in transition to hand the Eagles their first loss of the season and knock them from top spot.
THREE. Agnese Bonfantini cannot stop scoring. Now in her third loan spell — this time at Fiorentina — after successful stays with Sampdoria and Inter, the Juventus player is consistent in her ability to get around Serie A defences and score vital goals, and is reminiscent of a younger Valentina Giacinti. At 25, there is a serious question of what Juventus are actually doing with the striker, given her successive loans, as she has more than proved herself a threat in Italy.
TWO. Lyon draw a blank. There have been a few Champions League games, most notably (and recently) the final against Barcelona last May and a Coupe de France game last season when Lyon have failed to find the back of the net, but in the Première Ligue you have to go back 40 games to December 2022 to find Lyon’s last blank. There were maybe a few worrying signs for the Fenottes against Galatasaray earlier this month, with chances not being taken — although they still won comfortably — and against Paris FC, the ball simply refused to comply. The finishing could have been better but between the sticks, Nigeria international Chiamaka Nnadozie stood tall, repelling Lyon’s best efforts for 90 minutes to deliver a rare draw.
ONE. The two Bayer(n)s. The question a few weeks ago was, can Leverkusen find some consistency and actually make a season-long challenge for a European finish this time? Of course, Bayer immediately dropped points but against Munich, the hosts showed some real resilience, even after losing Julia Mickenhagen to a second yellow before eventually losing 3-2 (thanks to Alara Şehitler’s 90th minute winner). And the same can be said of Bayern, who had to dig deep to overcome a 1-0 and 2-1 deficit. — Lawson
