Welcome back to ShePlays WSL and welcome to the 2024/25 WSL season!
The WSL returns the weekend of Friday 20 to Sunday 22 September. With the relegation of Bristol City, brings the promotion of Crystal Palace for the first time to topflight. These upcoming articles will look to review last season, round-up the transfer window and fixture focus the opening game weeks. Deadlines close an hour before the first kick-off of the game week, so a reminder that the deadline for GW1 is Friday 20 September at 6pm UK time.
For today’s introduction, let’s start with the crucial initial team selection.
Team Selection
ShePlays requires you to submit 15 players within a 6m budget: two goalies, four defenders, four midfielders, and three forwards. The remaining two players are free choice and can be in any position. You can only pick up to four players from each WSL club, with player prices for this season ranging from 150,000 to 900,000.
For when injury or form means you’re in the market for a transfer, it is worth weighing up the -5 points rule. Your first transfer each round is free, but additional transfers will cost your team 5 points each. This is also why having a good bench is crucial.
Future articles from ShePlays will include looking at players’ performances over the season, so be sure to check back if you’d like some guidance or stats support for your decisions!
So, we move to the all-important point strategy. In ShePlays fantasy, the best allocation of points is 5 points for a goal as well as for a clean sheet (available for both defender and goalkeeper when they’ve played more than 60 minutes in that game). Looking back to last season, the leader of this big-pointer group is Bunny Shaw (900,000), appearing four times and contributing at least 25 points on these occasions. Two other forwards to consider would be West Ham’s Riko Ueki and Aggie Beever-Jones – both priced at 350,000.
For those potential points from defence, goalies Keating (350,000) or Brosnan (300,000) could be strong contenders.
The two highest scorers last season in defence came from Charles (700,000) and Greenwood (800,000). Charles picked up a shoulder injury in pre-season so is unavailable for the start of the season. Leicester’s Sophie Howard (350,000) or Liverpool’s Grace Fisk (450,000) and Gemma Bonner (400,000) could be a good choice of great value away from the highest prices.
Taking a look through the transfer window …
Liverpool’s fourth-place finish last season marked a great second season in the WSL. With few signings in over the summer, Liverpool’s MF Marie Höbinger (400,000) or FW Sophie Roman Haug (600,000) would be strong choices from an established position since last season. Second-place Manchester City have brought in many players from elsewhere in the league, including FW Vivianne Miedema from Arsenal, DF Risa Shimizu from West Ham, DF Naomi Layzell from Bristol, and GK Katie Startup from Brighton.
There’s been a lot of movement for Brighton this summer providing the club with a lot of players to utilise through their attacking threat. From Bruna Vilamala leaving Barcelona and inter-WSL moves of Fran Kirby and Jelena Čanković from Chelsea, to Nikita Parris coming in from Manchester United, all bring experience and strengthen the attack.
Champions Chelsea have signed some younger talent, like in MF Sandy Baltimore (400,000) who has started scoring during pre-season, with at least a goal contribution every other game she played in through her recent seasons at PSG.
Arsenal has looked to bolster their attacking threats through Mariona Caldentey and Rosa Kafaji, known to those who play ShePlays UWCL. GK Daphne Van Domselaar from Aston Villa to Arsenal is coming back from injury, we will have to see how much rotation occurs between her and the established starter in Manuela Zinsberger.
A note on minutes and rotation
Sometimes choosing new players for a club means taking a chance on minutes vs. rotation, getting into the finer margins of points for ShePlays fantasy managers. Players receive 2 points for playing at least 60 minutes in a game, and 1 point for making an appearance. Now an Everton player, Honoka Hayashi (250,000), played nearly all of West Ham’s games in the last two seasons, while almost doubling her passing and progression-related stats.
The Women’s League Cup (previously known as the Continental Cup) group stages start for the majority of WSL teams – apart from those in the Champions League – in October. Whether Arsenal and Manchester City will join Chelsea in the group stages of the Champions League will be finalised by WSL game week 2.
It’s something to keep in mind as the season progresses, as there will be teams who rotate more, and you might need to adjust your team selection or perhaps look to a transfer.
Good luck with your initial team selection and all the best for this season!