The WSL is nearly back and after an exciting summer of football! Personally, I can’t wait for the season to kick off.
So how about a little preview to kick off the season! I’ll cover the new signings for each club, players to keep an eye out for, and the first few games.
I have ordered the club previews based on last season’s table and each preview will have as much information as I can pull out of my brain. Note I got a bit tired towards the end of writing this.
Chelsea
Transfers
Chelsea have had a very busy transfer season with six new signings headlined by defenders Kadeisha Buchanan and Ève Perisset. The Blues have lost a couple of players including playmaker Ji So Yun and defender Jonna Anderson.
Chelsea are also supposedly close to signing Grace Geyoro from PSG. All of Chelsea’s signings are shown in the table below.
| Player | Former Club |
|---|---|
| Kadiesha Buchanan | Lyon |
| Ève Perisset | Bordeaux |
| Katerina Svitková | West Ham |
| Jelena Cankovic | Rosengård |
| Johanna Rytting Kaneryd | BK Häcken |
| Lucy Watson | Sheffield United |
Players to watch / starters
Chelsea’s defence is likely going to look a bit different this season with the additions of Buchanan and Perisset. If I was betting I’d say Emma Hayes is going to start the season with a four back of Eriksson, Buchanan, Bright and Perisset with Eriksson pushing out from her usual left centre-back to left-back.
The midfield is also going to be reshuffled with Ji So Yun’s departure and Melanie Leupolz on maternity leave. If Geyoro signs she’ll likely start in the pivot ahead of Sophie Ingle. The other “listed” midfielders to start will likely be made up of Reiten and Cuthbert with Reiten actually playing left-wing in the front three with Harder dropping into the 10 role ahead of Cuthbert. I also expect Fleming to get minutes most games after a good last season.
The front line will be the most consistent from last season with Kerr, Harder and Kirby all likely starting if they are fit. There are a couple of uncertainties with Kirby’s fitness so I expect the right-wing position to be shared with James. Chelsea will be hoping James can remain fit this season after a tough couple of seasons with injury.
With the sad news of Ann-Katrin Berger’s thyroid cancer returning, Mušović will start in goal for Chelsea.
Start of the Season Matches
Home vs West Ham
Away at Liverpool
Home vs Manchester City
Away at Everton
Away at Brighton & Hove Albion
First five rating – Easy
Arsenal
Transfers
Arsenal have had a relatively quiet summer. Only two signings have been announced so far, Swedish striker Lina Hurtig from Juventus and back-up keeper Kaylan Marckese from Koge to replace Lydia Williams.
Players to watch / starters
Miedema was the highest points scorer from last season and my personal rule is when in doubt captain Miedema. At the end of last season with the arrival of Blackstenius, Miedema dropped into the midfield in the 10 role and it seems likely this will continue this season. The listed forwards starting with Miedema up top will be Euro golden boot and player of the tournament Beth Mead and Blackstenius. I’m not quite sure who the other winger will be opposite Mead with options of Foord or McCabe. However, McCabe tends to start at full-back despite being listed as a forward by the club.
The midfield is going to be a bit congested with Miedema dropping into the 10 and Wälti the sole pivot in the squad. Eidevall has an abundance of talent in his midfield with Little, Nobbs, Iwabuchi, and Maanum. If he sticks with a 4-3-3 formation only one of them can start. I expect that player will likely on most occasions be captain Kim Little.
Arsenal’s defense will have to championship-winning captains at centre-back with Williamson and Souza. They will likely be flanked by Steph Catley and Katie McCabe. Personally, I think if Catley can stay fit this season she’ll be one of the best defenders in the league. Zinsberger will continue to be Arsenal’s number 1 and was the highest points scoring goal keeper last season.
Start of the Season Matches
Away at Manchester City
Home vs Brighton & Hove Albion
Home vs Tottenham
Away at Reading
Away at Liverpool
First five rating – Easy-ish
Manchester City
Transfers
Manchester City have lost a lot of players this summer but have also gained quite a few. Whether these signings will be able to fill the holes left is yet to be seen.
| Player | Former Club |
|---|---|
| Deyna Castellanos | Atletico Madrid |
| Leila Ouahabi | Barcelona |
| Laia Aleixandri | Atletico Madrid |
| Mary Fowler | Montpellier |
| Kerstin Casparij | FC Twente |
| Sandy MacIver | Everton |
Players to watch / starters
I have a lot of question marks about who’s going to play for Manchester City with so many key departures. The sure-fire starters are Roebuck, Greenwood, Shaw, Hemp, and Kelly. With Walsh leaving the club for Barcelona, her rumoured replacement is current Chelsea pivot Sophie Ingle. Walsh’s departure also means the entire starting midfield from last season will have left the club and Walsh, Weir and Stanway have big shoes to fill. I would probably expect to see Losada playing more this season to provide some experience and stabilise the team, but realistically I don’t know what Gareth Taylor is going to do with the starting line up.
Start of the Season Matches
Home vs Arsenal
Away at Aston Villa
Away at Chelsea
Home vs Leicester City
Away at Tottenham
First five rating – Medium to Hard
Manchester United
Transfers
The Red Devils have had a busy transfer window, signing seven new players and no major losses to the squad. Marc Skinner is seemingly gearing the side up for a top 3 finish this season. Manchester United will have plenty of pace up front with Leon, García, and Parris joining Russo. However, the signing that interests me the most is Le Tissier and how she fits into the United defence.
| Name | Former Club |
|---|---|
| Adriana Leon | West Ham |
| Rachel Williams | Tottenham |
| Grace Clinton | Everton |
| Maya Le Tissier | Brighton & Hove Albion |
| Lucia García | Athletic Club |
| Nikita Parris | Arsenal |
| Aissatou Tounkara | Atletico Madrid |
Players to watch / starters
Earps will be full of confidence in goal after an impressive euros campaign conceding only two goals. In front of her to start the season will likely be Batlle, Thorisdottir, Le Tissier, and Blundell. However, Turner is slowly returning to fitness and United may shift to a back three or lose Thorisdottir or Le Tissier from the starting line up.
Manchester United have reassigned Ella Toone and Leah Galton as midfielders this season which is super exciting! Personally, I think these two shifting from the forward talent pool will allow much more flexibility with formations and player selection. They will be joined in midfield by captain Zelem and Groenen, who was rumoured to be leaving over the summer.
Based on pre-season it doesn’t look like Skinner has settled on a starting attack. I’d expect Russo to be starting round 1 and then possibly any combination of Leon, García, and Parris.
Start of the Season Matches
Away at Tottenham
Home vs Reading
Away at West Ham
Home vs Brighton & Hove Albion
Away at Leicester City
First five rating – Easy-ish
Tottenham Hotspur
Transfers
Spurs will be hoping to continue their form from last season with summer transfers to challenge the top 4. Marc Skinner is seemingly gearing the side up for a top 3 finish this season. Tottenham have seven new signings including the return of Amy Turner and Angharad James (known value players in ShePlaysWSL) from a stint in the NWSL. They’ve also signed possibly the tallest player in the WSL 183 cm (6 foot), Nikola Karczewska, for reference Wendie Renard is 187 cm.
| Name | Former Club |
|---|---|
| Drew Spence | Chelsea |
| Amy Turner | Orlando Pride |
| Angharad James | Orlando Pride |
| Celin Bizet Ildhusøy | PSG |
| Nikola Karczewska | FC Fleury |
| Ellie Brazil | Brighton |
| Ramona Petzelberger | Aston Villa |
Players to watch / starters
Karczewska is a natural replacement for the outgoing Williams who lead the Spurs line last season. The rest of Spurs forward starters from last season have returned in Simon, Naz, and Ayane. However, Simon is yet to start a game for Spurs this preseason.
James and Spence will be huge boosts for the Spurs midfield this season. They will possibly be joined by Petzelberger or Summanen, but its also possible 4 listed “forwards” will be in the 11.
The Spurs defenders were highly valuable picks last season with Neville and Percival consistently in the Team of the Round. Percival is currently out with an ACL injury, but Neville is back along with captain Zadorsky, Bartrip, Ale, and new signing Turner. Spurs played a two keeper system last season with Spencer and Korpela, but based on preseason it looks like Spencer might start the season.
Start of the Season Matches
Home vs Manchester United
Away at Leicester City
Away at Arsenal
Home vs Liverpool
Home vs Manchester City
First five rating – Hard
West Ham United
Transfers
West Ham have had one of the biggest turnovers this summer with eight players leaving the club as well as coach Olli Harder. They have brought in ten new players including signing Lisa Evans permanently after a successful loan spell. The other notable signings are Smith and Asseyi.
| Name | Former Club |
|---|---|
| Lisa Evans | Arsenal |
| Kristy Smith | Manchester United |
| Vivianne Asseyi | Bayern Munich |
| Jess Ziu | Shelbourne |
| Izzy Atkinson | Celtic |
| Halle Hussien | Arsenal |
| Alex Hennessy | Arsenal |
| Keira Flannery | Arsenal |
| Sophie Hillyerd | Charlton |
| Thea Kyvåg | LSK Kvinner |
Players to watch / starters
West Ham have lost at least four regular starters from last season. The returning regular starters are goalkeeper Arnold, defenders Cissoko and Fisk, midfielder Brynjarsdóttir, and forward Evans. Players that will likely fill some of the gaps in the West Ham 11 are Smith, Asseyi, Longhurst, and Walker and possibly Houssien, Kyvåg, or Ziu. With a lot of untested WSL players in this West Ham squad, a replication of the sixth place finish from last season would be incredible.
Start of the Season Matches
Away at Chelsea
Home vs Everton
Home vs Manchester United
Away at Aston Villa
Home vs Reading
First five rating – Hard
Brighton & Hove Albion
Transfers
Brighton have a very lean squad to start the season with only 18 players currently in the squad. This is due to the seagulls losing 10 players over the summer with only six incoming player.
| Name | Former Club |
|---|---|
| Poppy Pattinson | Everton |
| Veatriki Sarri | Birmingham City |
| Rebekah Stott | Melbourne City |
| Park Ye-eun | Gyeongju KHNP |
| Elisabeth Terland | SK Brann |
| Jorja Fox | Chelsea (loan) |
Players to watch / starters
Walsh was the starting keeper for both Brighton and my fantasy team last season. If Brighton keep to their back three formation from last season I expect that to comprise of Williams, Kullberg, and Stott centrally with Pattinson, and Fox at fullback. In front of them is a bit more difficult to predict. Highly probably starters are Zigiotti, Sarri, and Terland followed by Carter, Connolly, and Green being the next most probable.
Start of the Season Matches
Home vs Aston Villa
Away at Arsenal
Home vs Reading
Away at Manchester United
Home vs Chelsea
First five rating – Hard
Reading
Transfers
Not a lot of movement by Reading this summer only losing two players.
| Name | Former Club |
|---|---|
| Brooke Hendrix | Melbourne Victory/ Racing Louisville |
| Becky Jane | Charlton |
| Jacqueline Burns | BK Häcken |
| Lauren Wade | Glentoran |
| Charlie Wellings | Celtic |
| Diane Caldwell | Manchester United |
Probable Starters
GK: Moloney
DF: Bryson, Evans, Mitchell (Mukandi), Cooper
MF: Vanhaevermaet, Rowe, Troelsgaard
FW: Dowie, Rose, Eikeland
Start of the Season Matches
Home vs Liverpool
Away at Manchester United
Away at Brighton & Hove Albion
Home vs Arsenal
Away at West Ham
First five rating – Medium
Aston Villa
Transfers
Aston Villa have had a very successful summer with exciting signings to bolster a team with growing ambitions in the WSL. The only downside is Northern Irish star Simone Magill tearing her ACL at the Euros which will delay her debut for the club.
| Name | Former Club |
|---|---|
| Simone Magill | Everton (injured -ACL) |
| Danielle Turner | Everton |
| Natasha Harding | Reading |
| Anna Leat | West Ham |
| Kenza Dali | Everton |
| Rachel Daly | Houston Dash |
| Anna Patten | Arsenal (loan) |
Probable Starters
GK: Hampton
DF: Corsie, Patten, Pacheco, Turner, Mayling
MF: Dali, Allen/Littlejohn
FW: Daly, Harding, Gielnik
Start of the Season Matches
Away at Brighton & Hove Albion
Home vs Manchester United
Away at Leicester City
Home vs West Ham
Home vs Everton
First five rating – Medium
Everton
Transfers
Once again Everton have brought in European internationals this summer. They’ll be hoping that’s the only thing similar with last season after a string of poor results saw them battling relegation rather than top 4 like they intended.
| Name | Former Club |
|---|---|
| Katja Snoeijs | Bordeaux |
| Karen Holmgaard | Potsdam |
| Katrine Veje | FC Rosengård |
| Clare Wheeler | Fortuna Hjørring (loan) |
| Aggie Beever-Jones | Chelsea (loan) |
| Jess Park | Manchester City (loan) |
| Emily Ramsey | Manchester United (loan) |
| Elise Stenevik | Eskilstuna United DFF |
Probable Starters
GK: Ramsey
DF: George, Bjorn, Veje, Sevecke
MF: Graham, Galli, Bennison. Christiansen
FW: Snoeijs, Duggan
Start of the Season Matches
Start of Season Matches
Home vs Leicester
Away at West Ham
Away at Liverpool
Home vs Chelsea
Away at Aston Villa
First five rating – Medium
Leicester City
Transfers
| Name | Former Club |
|---|---|
| CJ Bott | Vålerenga |
| Josie Green | Tottenham |
| Aileen Whelan | Brighton & Hove Albion |
| Erin Simon | Racing Louisville |
| Carrie Jones | Manchester United (loan) |
Probable Starters
GK: Levell/Lambourne
DF: McManus, Plumptre, Howard, Purfield, Tierney
MF: Green, Whelan, O’Brien, Pike
FW: Flint, Sigsworth
Start of Season Matches
Away at Everton
Home vs Tottenham
Home vs Aston Villa
Away at Manchester City
Home vs Manchester United
First five rating – Hard
Liverpool
Transfers
Former WSL champions Liverpool have got four new signings over the summer for their return to the WSL including a return for Shanice van de Sanden who played for the club for the 2016-2017 season.
| Name | Former Club |
|---|---|
| Emma Koivisto | Brighton &Hove Albion |
| Gilly Flaherty | West Ham |
| Shanice Van de Sanden | Wolfsburg |
| Eartha Cummings | Charlton |
Probable Starters
GK: Laws/Cumings
DF: Koivisto, Fahey, Flaherty, Campbell
MF: Kearns, Furness, ???
FW: Stengel, Van de Sanden, ???
Start of Season Matches
Away at Reading
Home vs Chelsea
Away at Tottenham
Home vs Arsenal
Away at Manchester City
First five rating – Hard