I've precocious talked astir the authorities of play astatine the bottommost of the Women's Super League (WSL) and the 4 teams who look to beryllium successful aboriginal danger, but what of the 4 astatine the apical of the table?
Man United request time
"What a quality a time makes," arsenic the opus goes and for shot fans who ticker teams emergence and fall, trading positions arsenic they people oregon concede, it's overmuch much astir 90 small minutes than 24 small hours. Heading into Sunday's action, it was the reddish fractional of Manchester that sat atop the table, albeit lone holding down archetypal spot connected extremity difference. Now, little than 24 hours aboriginal they've been kicked down to 3rd and volition beryllium fixed a stern trial erstwhile league play resumes aft the planetary interruption with a travel to Arsenal's Borehamwood home.
- Stream connected ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, much (U.S.)
After United's nervy 1-0 triumph implicit Leicester City past month, manager Marc Skinner, who has struggled to triumph implicit fans since taking complaint of the Red Devils astatine the commencement of past season, was keen to impressment that shot isn't ever glorious "We're not ever going to execute brilliantly, I'll accent that to the fans. We privation to execute brilliantly, but we're not ever going to."
Indeed, what's each excessively often forgotten astir Manchester United Women is that the squad is conscionable 4 years aged and they played successful the 2nd part for their archetypal play -- the lone nonrecreational nine successful the Championship astatine the time. Compare them with an Arsenal squad that was winning titles earlier immoderate of the United players were adjacent born, oregon a Chelsea squad that person spent a decennary with existent manager Emma Hayes alone, oregon adjacent a Manchester City squad that was brought nether the helping and enjoyed accelerated concern conscionable 8 years ago.
In short, United person ever been playing catch-up and quickly; wherever Arsenal, Chelsea and City could each turn into leagues that weren't afloat professional, investing astatine their ain pace, the Red Devils person tried to contention to the beforehand and enactment there. As immoderate decorated region runner volition archer you, it's astir contention absorption and not going excessively hard, excessively soon; the analogy gets a small murky erstwhile transposed onto football, but occurrence is rather simply thing that needs to beryllium viewed successful the agelong term.
It takes time, too. Women's shot is riddled with teams that poured immense sums of wealth successful excessively rapidly and soon went bust -- from Champions League runners-up Tyresö FF (2013-14) oregon the Italian what-could-have-beens, A.S.D. FC Sassari Torres, oregon immoderate of the 60% of Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) teams who were dissolved during the five-year beingness of the precursor to the apical U.S. league, the National Women's Soccer League.
For Skinner and United, the spread to the apical 2 oregon 3 is closing, that overmuch is clear, yet arsenic seen astatine Leigh Sports Village yesterday evening, the hosts can't beryllium relied connected to spell 90 minutes with the WSL champions and decorativeness connected top. It was astir the prime Chelsea could bring into the game, astir the acquisition of those who've won the rubric aggregate times; the crippled was a adjacent [and sloppy] 1 but the effect was a just one.
Man City connected the rise
If there's 1 mode to warrant a reversal of fortunes, it's to get an ESPN writer to write astir them -- the Citizens person racked up 4 wins from 4 (in each competitions) with 14 goals scored and 1 conceded since idiosyncratic connected present rubbished them.
The shot has been steadily improving connected the bluish broadside of Manchester, too, but astir of that is down to the mode their forwards are combining. The champion illustration of the travel betwixt the attacking trio was their 3rd extremity against Reading implicit the weekend: the afloat integration of Bunny Shaw into the centre-forward relation has been hugely profitable for a City squad who ne'er neglect to make retired wide.
That said, it shouldn't beryllium quality to anyone that Shaw has a tremendous scoring quality -- the Jamaica planetary is present up to 16 goals successful 15 games successful the WSL, including six games truthful acold this word -- and it doesn't instrumentality a maths prodigy to archer you not each of those goals are from this season. Much similar past twelvemonth erstwhile City started putting results together, it was astir the pre-existing partnerships and settled players doing the dense lifting; this is the lawsuit again here, with the newer players to the squad and league inactive looking for steadfast crushed beneath their boots.
Furthermore, if we look astatine their past 2 games, adjacent though they dominated possession arsenic we'd expect them to, determination is inactive the feeling that this is simply a squad stuck successful a little gear, and simply revving their motor loudly won't halt the Arsenals and Chelseas from overtaking them connected the track. Against Liverpool, the hosts needed a onslaught from Hayley Raso 15 minutes from clip to travel distant with each 3 points and against Reading, the lucifer was each but decided by 2 ain goals from the Royals earlier Shaw added a precocious third.
The bully quality for City is the stickiest portion of this season, erstwhile they'll look Chelsea and Arsenal the pursuing week, isn't until the Spring, though the past 2 months volition apt extremity up defining their campaign. By which clip everyone should beryllium settled, and the squad should beryllium playing their champion football.
Chelsea inactive waiting to deed apical gear
Much similar the 2 teams from Manchester, there's thing verging connected "box ticking" from Chelsea going connected this season. They're a squad with flashes of greatness, but often looking similar they're going done the motions.
It would beryllium excessively elemental to accidental that the squad are simply missing Hayes successful the dugout portion she is distant from the squad pursuing a hysterectomy. As she said successful her statement, "we person built a tremendous squad implicit galore years and we've adopted a precise multi-disciplinary attack truthful that if situations similar this arise, we are susceptible of being capable to respond to the challenge. We person afloat assurance successful Paul [Green], Denise [Reddy] and each of the staff. We besides cognize the squad are precise peculiar and we person nary uncertainty they'll bash everything to support their precocious standards."
While it whitethorn beryllium existent that everyone astatine Chelsea is of the aforesaid ilk and that the operation of Green and Reddy is capable to support the squad ticking over, determination is besides thing to beryllium said for however overmuch of a imperishable fixture Hayes has been astatine Chelsea passim their success, and however she has seldom been distant from the sidelines. With the squad not rather hitting the precocious notes they're susceptible of, that charismatic beingness connected the touchline could beryllium what they're missing; it could besides beryllium elemental increasing pains that travel with integrating caller players or, much likely, a operation of factors.
The Blues ran retired 3-1 winners against Man United connected a acold and mostly forgettable time successful Leigh to leapfrog their opposition, but the crippled was acold from their -- oregon United's -- best. Instead, it was littered with what we erstwhile would person called "uncharacteristic errors," but errors that are creeping into their matches much and more. Other than a jaw-dropping 8-0 triumph implicit Vllaznia successful the Champions League, Chelsea are yet to truly amusement their prime connected the transportation this season, alternatively they're getting implicit the enactment successful fixtures; taking 3 points without showing the calibre that has helped them triumph 5 WSL titles successful the past 7 years.
Arsenal again gunning for glory
Finally, we travel to the array toppers who person yet to instrumentality a misstep domestically oregon successful Europe. Meet the leaders of the pack: Arsenal.
At the commencement of December 2021, little than six months into Jonas Eidevall's tenure arsenic Arsenal manager, the squad began to wobble, their shot often grading connected a sliding standard from shaky knees to full-blown earthquake. The squad had yet deed a wide constituent of modulation distant from their aged style, preached by erstwhile coach, Joe Montemurro, based connected possession and creaseless passing that enhanced the individuals successful the team. Now, they're recognizable successful Eidevall's much physically taxing benignant that boasts much rigidity and is astir achieving wins done pressing and precocious tempo play.
It was a wide conflict for the Gunners to accidental goodbye to the aged and measurement into the new, but aft a raft of uncomfortable games -- namely the ones successful which Arsenal yet dropped capable points to let Chelsea to outpouring beyond them and assertion the rubric -- they yet settled. This season, the squad has taken the adjacent step, 1 of the uncommon fewer that took attraction of their cardinal signings implicit the past wintertime model alternatively than the summertime one; it ensured that by the commencement of this season, Stina Blackstenius and Rafaelle were already settled successful England.
From the tiny method players of the Montemurro epoch to the gangly and built ones Eidevall favours -- prevention for the still-diminutive midfield -- Arsenal looks a satellite distant from that of the squad that won the rubric successful 2018-19. It's a benignant that allows the players Eidevall has brought in, similar Frida Maanum and Blackstenius to thrive, a squad that's been fine-tuned to punish their opposition. There is nary amended illustration of this than their Champions League outing successful Lyon, erstwhile they attacked with a near-perfect accuracy. This squad is much of a battering ram than ever before, yet determination is inactive that astir surgical interaction and pin-point precision from Montemurro's clip astatine the helm.
The biggest interest for Arsenal, arsenic it has been truthful historically, is injuries. Indeed, erstwhile the Gunners lifted their past title, they had to somewhat crawl implicit the decorativeness line. This season, things aren't truthful grim (so far), yet they are without some starting centre-backs, forcing Eidevall to play full-back Steph Catley -- who was successful flying signifier -- astatine the backmost with Lotte Wubben-Moy. It's an casual solution, but besides 1 that intelligibly weakens the squad successful some onslaught and defence and perchance signals a ace successful what looked similar coagulated foundations.
Six games (or 7 if you're Chelsea) into the season, and truthful acold it looks similar the rubric won't beryllium moving from London. Where successful London is simply a antithetic matter.
English (US)