Manchester City
Last season’s runners-up open the new season this weekend when they face a trip to Villa Park and WSL newcomers Aston Villa, Saturday lunchtime.
With a new manager at the helm, Gareth Taylor will hope for a confident performance in a season where City will be again challenging for the top. After Nick Cushing departed during the 2019/20 season for New York, Taylor took charge and has now been made the permanent boss.
City felt they unduly missed out on the title last season after being top of the pile at the abrupt conclusion of the league campaign. Having played 16 games, one more than Chelsea they sat on 40 points, one above the Blues. However, PPG took into consideration the game in hand alongside Chelsea being unbeaten at the end of play and awarded the London side the WSL crown.
With this on their mind, City are likely to come out of the blocks firing especially after another defeat to Chelsea last weekend in the Community Shield. Taylor was defeated in his first full game in charge and the match offered some negative for City. Striker Lauren Hemp has been ruled out of the opening games of the season due to a hamstring injury sustained at Wembley while youngster Tyler Toland was also seen in a medical boot at the ground so is unlikely to feature this weekend.
Therefore, Taylor will look towards his array of new signings including England star Chloe Kelly. The forward joined the club from Everton and could play an integral part of a title charge. American duo Sam Mewis and Rose Lavelle also arrived in Manchester to boost the midfield although Lavelle is currently unavailable due to the quarantine period, a lack of match fitness and needing time to adapt to the new environment and team.
In the public pre-season results, City have remained unbeaten beating Championship sides Coventry United and Sheffield United by large margins before an undisclosed game with Aston Villa was followed by a 4-1 victory over Everton. Gemma Bonner, Steph Houghton, Georgia Stanway, Ellen White, Keira Walsh, Hemp, Kelly and Mewis have all registered pre-season strikes.
The title chasers will be without defender Aoife Mannion who is returning from long-term injury while fellow defender Megan Campbell will be available after to returning to the bench for the Community Shield. They’re also boosted by the return of Esme Morgan from a successful loan spell at Everton last season, who could be worth investment at £17,500.
After facing Villa in round one, City will welcome Brighton & Hove Albion to the Academy Stadium.
Below we take a look at three players that could play huge roles in City’s search for the WSL title:
Star of the Show: Caroline Weir – MF – £70,000 – 207 points during the 2019/20 campaign
The Manchester City midfield this season is a pricy affair for ShePlays fantasy managers. Caroline Weir proved a popular player in selection last year with a price of £40,000. She has faced a price hike this year with a £70,000 price tag, it’s no surprise really as the Scottish international recorded the highest amount of points by a midfielder with 207. She was the only midfielder to break the 200 mark, 24 points above Guro Reiten. She was also the third highest scoring player overall. The battle for the City midfield could prove an exciting one this season with Weir facing competition from Mewis, Lavelle, Jill Scott and the deeper lying Keira Walsh.
New Arrival: Sam Mewis – MF – £80,000
One of two American arrivals at City this summer, Sam Mewis will bring quality to a midfield already brimming. Along with Rose Lavelle, Mewis is a World Cup winner and both players are likely to play a huge part for the citizens. Arriving from North Carolina Courage, Mewis is instantly available (unlike Lavelle, who is in quarantine) and has already featured in a pre-season friendly and coming off the bench in the Community Shield last weekend. Mewis scored once and assisted twice on her friendly Man City debut and she will be a face causing concern for the awaiting WSL newbies, Aston Villa on the opening day. She goes in to ShePlays at the premium price of £80,000 but she has won the World Cup….
Kid on the Block: Esme Morgan – DF – £17,500 – 19 years old
Defender Esme Morgan spent the 2019/20 WSL campaign on loan at Everton where she had a season to remember. She broke into the Toffees first team and was a mainstay in the back line for the duration. Scoring 78 ShePlays points, the 19-year-old has now returned to her parent club and is looking to progress further. It has got off to a good start as Morgan played the full 90 minutes at Wembley for the Community Shield. And although a natural centre back, the right back slot will open the opportunity for an attacking return, a price of £17,500 is a steal for a player at a side fighting for the title.
Learn more about Morgan’s career so far here
Follow @etiawneb on Twitter to keep up with updates throughout the season.
The graphic featured is an opinion of a likely lineup and does not reflect the likelihood of this being correct on Sunday. We cannot guarantee that our injury information obtained is 100% correct.