Chelsea vs Liverpool: Women's Super League Preview, Gameweek ...

4 May 2023

VAVEL.com

Chelsea host Liverpool in the Women's Super League this evening, as the Blues look to continue their push for the WSL title.

The original fixture between the two sides back in January was abandoned after just six minutes played with a frozen pitch, meaning the two sides face off again tonight.

Emma Hayes' side are seven points off league leaders Manchester United in the WSL. However, the Blues have three games in hand, meaning max points from those matches would put them top of the league.

Having played in the UEFA Women's Champions League semi-finals in recent weeks, Chelsea has not played in the WSL since April 2, where they comfortably beat Aston Villa 3-0 at the Bescot Stadium.

They will be looking to put the disappointment of Champions League elimination behind them and face a Liverpool side who have had a relatively successful season under boss Matt Beard.

The Reds are 7th in the WSL, eight points above the relegation zone and are just two points from safety, which would be a big achievement for a Liverpool side that many tipped to go down at the start of the season.

Liverpool suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat at the hands of Leicester City last time out (Photo by John Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

Similarly to Chelsea, they come into this game on the back of a disappointing result having lost to relegation-threatened Leicester City 4-0 at the weekend.

Team News

Liverpool

Matt Beard will have several players missing ahead of tonight's trip to Kingsmeadow.

Megan Campbell and Yana Daniels are both unavailable, whilst Melissa Lawley has been ruled out for the rest of the season.

It has been confirmed by Beard that Leanne Kiernan and Niamh Fahey are both back in training, whilst also confirming that they remain on the sidelines for tonight's game.

Chelsea

With this being Chelsea's first WSL game for a month, they will be looking to continue their momentum in the league.

Emma Hayes has confirmed Pernille Harder has returned to training and could be involved in the closing stages of the season.

However, with all the focus turning to the WSL title charge now that the Blues are out of the Champions League, it could be an unchanged side from Hayes.

Predicted Lineup

Liverpool

Laws; Koivisto, Bonner, Matthews, Hinds; Holland, Nagano; Lundgaard, Kearns, Stengel, Dowie. (4-2-3-1)

Chelsea

Berger; Perisset, Mjelde, Eriksson, Carter; Cuthbert, Leupolz, Reiten; Charles, Kerr, James. (4-3-3)

Key Players

Liverpool - Ceri Holland

For Liverpool, safety is all but secured and with that, Beard's players can play with a bit more freedom.

Someone who is perfect at that is Ceri Holland, who plays a vital role at both ends of the pitch for the Reds.

Ceri Holland scored twice against Brighton two weeks ago (Photo by John Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

A brace against Brighton two weeks ago ensured Liverpool claimed all three points at Prenton Park, with the Wales international having relatively consistent performances since the turn of the year.

Whilst she was substituted at halftime against Leicester last time out, there is no doubt she could play a part in any result that Liverpool manages to get from Kingsmeadow.

Chelsea - Guro Reiten

Emma Hayes has several players to choose from, with arguably one of the highest-quality squads in Europe when it comes to squad depth.

Whilst they will all play their part in the run-in, Norway international Reiten has played a huge role in Chelsea's WSL title charge this season.

With 9 assists to her name in the WSL this season, she has been pivotal to Chelsea keeping up with those at the top and could play a huge role tonight.

Reiten has recorded 9 assists in the WSL this season (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images)