Key events
3 min: City go on the attack as Hemp attempts a cross into the box, which is headed away by Girma. The winger receives the ball once again and this time looks for Casparij at the back post, who can’t get quite enough contact on it.
2 min: Chelsea are looking to keep possession in these early stages but the ball flies out of play when Bright attempts to switch over to Thompson.
Kick-off
We’re under way at the Etihad!
The teams are out! Kick-off is just a few moments away!
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After six consecutive years as champions, Chelsea find their once firm grip on the Women’s Super League crown has been reduced to a little finger clinging to the side of the trophy. They head to the Etihad Stadium on Sunday nine points behind their opponents and surely sensing that only a win could prevent the title from transferring to Manchester City’s outstretched arms.
Tom Garry
The big surprise here is the absence of Lucy Bronze for Chelsea. She has a ‘minor injury’, we are told. That’s a massive blow for the visitors. Manchester City, meanwhile, are overjoyed to welcome back Mary Fowler after her lengthy injury absence.
Tom Garry
A big guest booking for a big game; The Wanted 2.0 are currently performing pitchside here at the Etihad, providing a little treat for the supporters who got to their seats early. They’ll be – ahem – glad they came. On the pitch, you could say it’ll be an All Time Low for Chelsea if they slip 12 points behind the leaders today. This would be uncharted territory for the defending champions. They have to get a result today.
Manchester City head coach Andrée Jeglertz urged his players to have a “revenge feeling” approach to their WSL clash with Chelsea.
The club’s 2-1 loss to the Blues on the opening day remains the only time City have dropped points in the league this season. They also suffered a defeat to Chelsea in the League Cup semi-final last week. Jeglertz is determined to fight back this time around.
He said: “What I expect, they expect from each other. First of all, being fortunate to play these kind of games for these players. Also being in the situation which we have created being top of the league, nine points ahead it has to be enjoyment from the players to step out on the field on Sunday. It definitely has to be the first thing. We’ll do everything we can to win the game. We lost to Chelsea one a half weeks ago and the first game in the league so there has to be a part of a revenge feeling that now it’s time to get those three points. Those are the key things for us.”
Sonia Bompastor backtracked on her suggestion that the WSL title race was “probably gone” ahead of today’s match and urged Chelsea to “fight” until the end.
The head coach all-but conceded the title race last week following her team’s 2-0 loss to Arsenal at Stamford Bridge.
However, she backed Chelsea to bounce back against City this weekend.
Bompastor said: “Our mentality is to fight until the end, no matter what happens. We will never give up. There are nine games left in the WSL. The only thing is that we are not in control of it. Manchester City are leading the table and are in control. We just need to make sure we focus on how we want to perform and to give ourselves a better chance to win. Every game is a must-win game for Chelsea. We will never give up.”
Elsewhere in the WSL today
Arsenal’s match against Leicester City, which was due to take place yesterday, was postponed due to the London club’s involvement in the Champions Cup.
It’s an interesting choice from Sonia Bompastor to start without a striker. Both Sam Kerr and Aggie Beever-Jones are on the bench, with Lauren James and Alyssa Thompson the most attacking players for the Blues.
Mary Fowler is back in the Manchester City squad for the first time in 294 days. The forward ruptured her ACL during the club’s FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United last April, which ruled her out for the remainder of 2025.
However, she is back on the bench today – and what a match to return for!
Team news
Manchester City starting line-up: Ayaka Yamashita; Jade Rose, Rebecca Knaak, Alex Greenwood (C), Kerstin Casparij; Laura Blindkilde Brown, Yui Hasegawa; Lauren Hemp, Vivianne Miedema, Kerolin; Khadija Shaw.
Substitutes: Khiara Keating, Grace Clinton, Laura Coombs, Mary Fowler, Leila Ouahabi, Sam Coffey, Aoba Fujino, Iman Beney, Gracie Prior.
Chelsea starting line-up: Hannah Hampton; Ellie Carpenter, Millie Bright (C), Veerle Buurman, Naomi Girma, Sandy Baltimore; Erin Cuthbert, Keira Walsh, Wieke Kaptein; Alyssa Thompson, Lauren James.
Substitutes: Becky Spencer, Livia Peng, Sjoeke Nüsken, Guro Reiten, Johanna Rytting Kaneryd, Sam Kerr, Lexi Potter, Aggie Beever-Jones, Chloe Sarwie.
Preamble
Hello, good afternoon and welcome to coverage of the WSL clash between Manchester City and Chelsea. It’s first versus second today as City look to extend their lead at the top of the table to 12 points – which would effectively see them put one hand on the trophy with eight games left to play.
The last time these two sides met in the league was on the opening day of the season, when Chelsea clinched a 2-1 win at Stamford Bridge. That remains the only time Manchester City have dropped points this term.
The Blues can go into this game with some confidence, despite last weekend’s 2-0 defeat to Arsenal. They progressed to the Subway League Cup final with a 1-0 win over City less than a fortnight ago thanks to a first-half goal from Wieke Kaptein.
Of course, you can never count the reigning champions out.
This could be a season-defining match for both clubs, so you don’t want to miss it!
Kick-off for this one is at 2:30pm GMT – join me!
