WSL Week 6
The first week back following the international break after 5 of our FORTE players were called up to the England U23 Squad with Alessia Russo being recalled to the senior squad.
Aston Villa Women vs Chelsea Women
0-1
Maz Pacheco and Villa were in for a tough test against 2nd placed Chelsea. Villa started well but it was the Blues that broke the deadlock first. Chelsea dominated possession but Villa remained resilient with Maz shining at the back against some top-class players. Aston Villa pushed for an equaliser led by Pacheco and her whipped cross from her corner nearly being tapped in at the front post however it was not meant to be as Chelsea won 1-0.
Tottenham Hotspur Women vs Manchester United Women
1-1
Following her call up to the senior England squad, Alessia Russo started for Manchester United up top once again. Spurs started well controlling possession, but it was Russo with the first chance of the evening after showing some great strength she managed to test the goalkeeper from a tight angle. Just before halftime, Russo got through for the second time and made no mistake by smashing the ball into the goal making it 1-0. After a tough second half, Spurs managed to equalise in the 95th minute following a long free kick into the box. A minute later, Alessia came so close to scoring the winning goal, but the keeper just about got a hand to her headed effort. United move to 5th place following a frustrating draw against a very organised Spurs team.
Birmingham City Women vs Reading Women
0-3
England Women’s U23 goalkeeper Emily Ramsey was in goal once again for Birmingham, but it was Reading who came out on top. Ramsey had no chance in saving the first two close range goals from some good deliveries. However, she did manage to make 6 saves as Reading pushed for more goals. Finally, the third goal was let in which means Birmingham remain 11th in the table with 1 point fro, 6 games.
Leicester City Women vs Manchester City Women
1-4
Another one of our young Lionesses was back in action in Molly Pike who has remained as one of Leicester’s most consistent performers this season. The Foxes who are still looking for their first points, stunned City in the 1st minute after pouncing on a mistake by the centre back and slotting it away. However, City equalised relatively quickly and from there dominated the game by scoring 4 in the end. Molly made some good defensive plays from the middle of the park, but it wasn’t enough as City move to 7th and Leicester remain at 12th place.
Arsenal Women vs West Ham United Women
4-0
Our young FORTE combo of Mel Filis and Lois Joel would start on the bench for the Hammers against 1st place Arsenal which was shown live on Sky Sports. Anna Pattern was also on the bench for the gunners following her international break with the England U23s but would not feature in this game. The Gunners as expected dominated possession and had many chances to score first. In the end, captain Kim Little managed to break the deadlock and doubled their lead in the second half. Mel came on in the second half as did Joel but the Gunners were too dominant and ended up winning 4-0.
Written by Zak Byskup
8/11/2021