Team Changes & Lineups
Man Utd have made one change in their starting XI from the side that started last Sunday’s 2-0 win against Liverpool. Sandberg comes in replacing leading scorer Melvine Malard, who drops to the bench.
Chelsea rotate three players in and out of the XI that started the 4-0 win at West Ham. Ellie Carpenter replaces Veerle Buurman at the back, Macario comes in instead of Oriane Jean-François in the middle of the park, and Baltimore claims Thompson’s place up front. All of the players dropped are substitutes.
Confirmed Lineups
Manchester United: Tullis-Joyce (GK), Riviere, Le Tissier, Janssen, Rolfo, Sandberg, Miyazawa, Park, Toone, Zigiotti Olme, Terland.
Substitutes: Middleton-Patel, Rendell, Blundell, George, Awujo, Ildhusoy, Naalsund, Malard, Williams.
Chelsea: Hampton, Bjorn, Bright, Carpenter, Kaptein, Cuthbert, Walsh, Baltimore, Kaneryd, Macario, Beever-Jones.
Subs: Peng, Reiten, Thompson, Buurman, Kerr, Hamano, Jean-Francois, Nusken, Potter.
Match Preview
Just four games in, and it seems this feels like potentially a crucial match. Look! the league positions:
Pos Team P GD Pts 1 Chelsea Women 4 8 12 2 Man Utd Women 4 10 10 3 Man City Women 4 7 9 4 Tottenham Hotspur Women 4 0 9 5 Arsenal Women 4 7 8
Man Utd can go top if they win this evening. It’s a big ask, even with home advantage, not least because the visitors haven’t lost in the WSL since the tail end of the 2023-24 season – and they went on to claim the championship. Moreover, Cuthbert along with Beever-Jones are displaying the sort of form that’s seen them firing shots into the top corner.
Yet despite that, United retain belief in their ability to end the long undefeated streak of the top side in the land. This is partly due to their backline is strong – they’ve only conceded one goal so far this season – and they’ve got spectacular goals in them as well: including Miyazawa, capable of launch a howitzer. With Melvine Malard joint top of the early goalscoring charts alongside the aforementioned Beever-Jones, there’s enough firepower on display for this to be a thriller. Should fate tempt to deliver a 0-0, apologies are in order ahead of time. The match starts at Leigh Sports Village will be at 7.30pm BST. It’s on!
