Chelsea return to Women’s Super League (WSL) action this weekend with the visit of title rivals Manchester City.
Stamford Bridge will host this top-flight clash between two teams fighting for the title this season. Gareth Taylor’s city The team currently has an advantage in the standings, but has played one match more than their rivals.
For Sonia Bompastor, this is her first season coaching in England after managing Lyon in France. The 44-year-old currently has a 100 percent record Chelsea in all competitions, so they will be hoping to avoid a first defeat of the season.
All WSL matches will take place at Premier League away this weekend and this will be Chelsea’s second game at the Bridge this season. They previously hosted Real Madrid in west London in the group stage of the Champions League last month
Here’s a 90-minute guide to this weekend’s meeting between the two title rivals…
Chelsea |
Man City |
---|---|
Celtic 1-2 Chelsea – 13/11/24 |
Man City 2-0 Hammarby – 11/12/24 |
Liverpool 0-3 Chelsea – 11/10/24 |
Man City 4-0 Tottenham – 08/11/24 |
Everton 0-5 Chelsea – 03/11/24 |
Crystal Palace 0-3 Man City – 03/11/24 |
Chelsea 5-2 Tottenham – 20/10/24 |
Man City 2-1 Aston Villa – 20/10/24 |
FC Twente 1-3 Chelsea – 17/10/24 |
St Polten 2-3 Man City – 16/10/24 |
country |
TV channel/live broadcast |
---|---|
united kingdom |
Sky Sports Showcase, Sky Sports Football, Sky Sports Premier League |
Sonia Bompastor remains without long-term absentees Sam Kerr, Mia Fishel and Sophie Ingle. Lauren James has also been sidelined since before the last international break and won’t be back until December at the earliest.
The Chelsea manager was also able to rest a number of key players midweek for their Champions League group stage clash against Celtic. Mayra Ramirez, Millie Bright, Kadeisha Buchanan and Sjoeke Nusken did not travel with the squad to Glasgow and are expected to be fresh and fit for Saturday’s game at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea predicted line-up against Man City
Chelsea predicted line-up against Man City (4-2-3-1): Hampton; Bronze, Buchanan, Bright, Baltimore; Nusken, Cuthbert; Kaneryd, Hamano, on horseback; Ramirez
Laia Aleixandri and Naomi Layzell remained sidelined for City’s Champions League clash against Hammarby, although Taylor did not indicate whether the weekend’s game at Chelsea would also come too soon for the defensive pair. City are also without long-term absentee Vivianne Miedema Risa Shimizu as she recovers from a knee injury.
Lauren Hemp was absent from the side that beat Hammarby on Tuesday night, with Taylor confirming after the game that she was not fit enough to play after picking up an injury during the Crystal Palace game earlier this month this month
“She was able to play against the Spurs, but she couldn’t tonight,” Taylor said explained after the match. “It’s just going to take a little bit longer to evaluate and figure out a little bit more.
“Hopefully (Lauren can play against Chelsea). There’s an opportunity there. So we’ll just have to take our time tomorrow and have a chat with the medical staff and find out where we’re at.”
Man City predicted line-up against Chelsea
Man City’s predicted line-up against Chelsea (4-3-3): Keating; Casparij, Kennedy, Greenwood, Ouahabi; Park, Hasegawa, Roord; Fowler, Shaw, hemp
Chelsea have had a very strong start to the 2024/25 season as they remain unbeaten in all competitions. They are currently second in the table behind City after playing a game less than their title rivals.
Bompastor’s side have home advantage on Saturday, but this will undoubtedly be their toughest test yet. It’s a tough one to call, but the London club should have enough to pull off a win to clinch top spot in the standings.