Women’s Super League

EUROS heroine Beth Mead picked up right where she left off with a deadly double as Arsenal got off to a WSL flier.And a big finish from Kim Little gave the Gunners the perfect start as they trounced ten-player Brighton 4-0.
Beth Mead scored her first brace of the new WSL seasonCredit: Getty
Kim Little was on target with the first top-flight goal of this term as Arsenal knocked four past BrightonCredit: Reuters
Forward Mead was the top scorer during the Women’s Euros this summer as England famously lifted the trophy.
And despite netting twice during a crushing win over Albion, perfectionist Mead hoped to bag more goals.
The Arsenal ace told Sky Sports: “I’m disappointed with a few of my chances. I should have scored more, and we could have put a few more away as a team.
“But four goals and three points is what we wanted.
“We’ve set our standards now and we need to keep setting them higher.”
Kim Little got the Gunners up and running at a sold-out Meadow Park with the opener on 28 minutes and Stina Blackstenius’ thunderbolt made it 2-0 five minutes after the break.
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The Seagulls battled to stem the hosts’ pressing and shots on goal following Emma Kullberg’s seventh-minute sending-off.
She saw red for bringing down Blackstenius when through on goal.
Mead soon got in on the act as Arsenal sent out a Women’s Super League title warning on the opening night of the season.
And scorer Little reckons her three-month stint on loan at OL Reign in America’s top-tier has helped keep her razor-sharp.
The Scottish midfielder said: “I played six games out in America, so I was able to get that (fitness) in me before coming into the season here in the WSL.
“It has helped me because it was a long off-season of almost four months from our last game against West Ham.
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“It definitely put me in good stead to start the season here.”
Hope Powell, whose side finished seventh last term, gave a debut to Albion summer signing Elisabeth Terland.
But Kullberg’s red gave them a mountain to climb. Of the decision, Seagulls chief Powell said: “I thought it was offside at first and an accident. I was surprised but I will have to watch it again.”
The visitors defended bravely with Victoria Williams producing a well-timed block to stop Vivianne Miedema’s shot.
Brighton’s forays forward were few during the match.   
Emma Kullberg was sent off in the fifth minute following a foul on Stina BlacksteniusCredit: Alamy
But when they did get forward, they looked dangerous with new Seagull Terland firing wide of the far post moments before Little’s opener
But the visitors’ resistance was eventually broken when Little walloped an effort into the bottom corner.
The hosts almost doubled their lead in the 32nd minute with Blackstenius hitting the bar before Megan Walsh denied Miedema.
The second half saw Brighton attempt to battle back with Powell shuffling her deck with Katie Robinson coming on for Libby Bance.
And the midfielder fired a dangerous effort across the face of the goal in the 49th minute forcing keeper Manuela Zinsberger into action.
Arsenal will host Tottenham at the Emirates next in the WSL while Brighton will play Reading at homeCredit: Getty
Moments later, Arsenal doubled their lead with Blackstenius smashing the ball high into the net before Mead made it 3-0 on 63 minutes.
Jordan Nobbs hit the woodwork late on, then Mead bagged goal number four.
The in-form forward skipped past her marker to register a double as the Gunners sealed an impressive win before their clash with Ajax and an Emirates derby duel with Spurs. More

LEAH WILLIAMSON says the “pain” of Arsenal coming close to WSL title glory has put “fire” in her belly to help the club become champions.The history-making England skipper, 25, is ready to go through a rollercoaster of emotions following the highs of winning the Euros.
Leah Williamson and Arsenal take on Brighton in their first game of the new WSL seasonCredit: Getty
Arsenal are aiming to win the league title for the first time since 2019Credit: Getty – Contributor
This week Williamson and team-mates begin their quest to win more silverware for a club who were once the most dominant in the domestic game.
A total of 58 trophies have been lifted by Arsenal between 1992 and 2019.
These include 15 top-flight titles with the last of their three WSL crowns clinched in 2019.
Having tasted glory with England this summer, the Milton Keynes-born central defender is hungry to help the Gunners return to the top.  
Williamson, whose team play Brighton at home on Friday night, said: “At the end of last season because it came down to the wire.
“We missed out by the finest of margins, it hurt me a lot and I think it tired me.
“Going to the Euros, the closer you get to the final the more you realise if it’s not successful you have to do that all again to even have a shot at winning.
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“To be successful has given me a bit of fire back in my belly before the season and now I’m looking forward to starting a new journey so to speak.
“I’ve definitely got my motivation back and once you get a taste of winning you obviously want more.”
Arsenal’s clash with Albion will see Williamson, Beth Mead and Lotte Wubben-Moy back in WSL action for the first time since England’s Euros win in July.
A 2-1 defeat of Germany at Wembley saw Williamson enter the history books as the first player to skipper a Lionesses side to European Championship triumph.
And the versatile defender jokingly admits to dreading the moment when she does not reflect on that win at least once during the day.
The WSL star added: “I’m a big softy. I like fairytale endings.
“It was very fitting for that tournament on home soil at Wembley so you couldn’t have really written it much better.”
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When Per Mertesacker won the 2014 World Cup with Germany, the former Gunners defender admitted it was hard to come down from the elation of winning the tournament.
On whether she has experienced similar feelings following the Euros, Williamson said: “I did have a conversation with Jonas Eidevall about it and where I was at with returning.
“As much as coming out of a tournament early and underachieving, going from the highest of highs and going back into normal life regardless of football, is still hard.
England’s Euros win has made Williamson hungrier for more success at club levelCredit: AFP
“I was expecting that. I had plans in place to deal with my own emotions around it.
“I’m very lucky that I play for a club that I love so it doesn’t feel like a day of work.
“I’m expecting some emotions so I’m expecting a little bit of a rollercoaster of them at some points.”
Arsenal’s season-opener comes four days before their Champions League second-round duel with Ajax
Being so close to (winning) the league last season, obviously, we are chasing that, and the Champions League is the big one. It’s a different game.Leah Williamson
Both clubs battling for a place in the contest’s group stages.
The experience of winning a major trophy on the international has given Williamson more belief in the Gunners’ potential in the contest this term.
The club is currently the only English side to win the tournament when Vic Akers guided them to victory against Swedish outfit Umea in April 2007.
The centre-back said: “We want to be winning things.
Jonas Eidevall’s stars will face Ajax in the Champions League on TuesdayCredit: Getty
“Being so close to (winning) the league last season, obviously, we are chasing that, and the Champions League is the big one. It’s a different game.
“We weren’t in it for so many years but now we have players who have been in it and are ready.
“We want to see how far we can go in that so that motivates me a lot.” More

JONAS EIDEVALL wants more WSL games hosted at bigger stadiums with surging fan interest in matches following the Euros.The Arsenal chief, 39, hopes postponed top-tier fixtures can take place on the same rescheduled date with the FA in talks with clubs.
Jonas Eidevall has called for more WSL games to be held at larger stadiumsCredit: Getty
Arsenal take on Brighton at Meadow Park before an Emirates clash with Tottenham with 40,000 tickets sold ahead of the derbyCredit: Getty
The Gunners’ home duel with Brighton on Friday kicks off the new WSL term with Eidevall’s side targeting a first title win since 2019.
The 7:30 pm Meadow Park fixture will be the first top-tier game held following the death of Queen Elizabeth II last Thursday at Balmoral
Matches were postponed last week in honour of the passing of the nation’s longest-serving monarch.
The clash comes eight days before Arsenal play Tottenham at the Emirates with a WSL record-breaking crowd expected with 40,000 tickets sold.
When asked how players will react to ramped-up interest in the league, Eidevall, said: “I’m sure players will respond in a way that will be excellent because the quality (of the game) on the pitch is there.
“We just need to make sure we find stadiums that allow more attendees to come in and watch.
“The problem will be where we see we have a very low number of medium-sized stadiums in the country, so you either have smaller stadiums or really big ones.
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“Our postponed game against Manchester City is a perfect example of that.
“These are two good teams and with interest from the Euros, of course, that’s going to be a sell-out that at their Academy Stadium.
“The question is when so many more people want to watch the game, where do we play it so all those who want to come to a game and watch have access?”
Man City sold more than 6,000 tickets for their Sunday night home duel with Arsenal – one of six postponed WSL fixtures due to be rescheduled.  
An FA spokesperson told SunSport: “Women’s Super League clubs have been given some flexibility to rearrange their postponed matches.
“This is to ensure they are able to find a date and time that overcomes the various challenges they have to navigate such as stadium availability.”
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The FA says rescheduled dates are in the process of being finalised with clubs with new timings to be announced in due course.
Eidevall added: “My opinion is that in the WSL, you would play all the postponed games from this round on the same date.
“That’s so you don’t create a league table where some teams have, for example, played ten (matches) and some teams have played 11 and they play on different sides of the transfer window.
“I don’t think anyone will take that into account.
“But for me when I look at trying to make it fair – and it’s really important the competition is fair to all teams – I would do it that way.”
Friday night’s match will see Arsenal’s Euros and Copa America Feminina winners back in league action.
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Leah Williamson, Beth Mead, Lotte Wubben-Moy claimed tournament medals following England’s Euros triumph.
And Rafaelle Souza skippered Brazil to a fourth consecutive Copa America crown.
Eidevall wants Arsenal to leverage their mental strength after finishing a point behind champions Chelsea last term.
And the Gunners gaffer highlighted some of England’s Euros winning exploits involving Arsenal aces as examples.
Eidevall said: “With mental strength, it starts with believing because if you concede a goal, you will have different emotions going through your body and you can let those emotions take over and influence your actions.
Eidevall reckons Arsenal can harness the trophy-winning experiences of their Euros and Copa America winnersCredit: Getty
“You can give up or think it’s going to be one of those days where we’re going to concede another goal. Or you can remember and say ‘now, wait a minute’.
“For example, the English players who went 1-0 down against Spain at (at the Euros), they have the memory now that says, ‘No, it doesn’t have to be that way’.
“It can be one of those days as well where we score in the 80th minute and then we get an overtime goal.
It’s about creating a product that means so much to people that they go and watch (a game) even if there’s a snowstorm.Jonas Eidevall
“So of course, I think positive experiences help a lot in order to deal with adverse situations.”
With rising post-Euros interest in the women’s game, WSL followers hope there are no knock-on effects on fan attendance following last week’s match postponements.
Before games were postponed Albion boss Hope Powell talked of the need to prevent crowd numbers from dwindling during winter.
On avoiding attendance dips, Eidevall added: “In the end, it’s about creating a product that means so much to people that they go and watch (a game) even if there’s a snowstorm.
Arsenal have sold more than 2,720 tickets for their duel with Brighton at their 3,200-capacity Meadow Park homeCredit: Getty
“You go and watch even when it’s not convenient because you care so much about the team.
“If I talk about Arsenal as a club (we’re) trying to work together with all departments so we can reach potential audiences and bring them to stadiums.
“But that’s not a quick fix, it’s about making that connection with people so they feel they have to go.” More

HOPE POWELL is unsurprised by Graham Potter becoming Chelsea boss with the Blues due to play their first game under the ex-Albion gaffer.And the Brighton manager is looking at strengthening her side in the winter transfer window after a busy summer of player arrivals and exits.
Hope Powell says Brighton’s Prem stars have had an excellent start to their season under former boss Graham PotterCredit: Reuters
Chelsea will play RB Salzburg in the Champions League in their first home game under their new bossCredit: Getty
Wednesday night will see Powell’s former Seagulls counterpart in the Stamford Bridge dugout for the first time since his appointment last Thursday.
The Blues take on RB Salzburg in a Champions League encounter at home after falling to a surprise 1-0 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb on the road in their first group stage game this term.
Brighton Women’s chief Powell said: “He’s had an excellent start to the season.
“I think it was muted last year (there was interest in him) when Tottenham had a vacancy. 
“It just shows that everybody recognises the good work he’s done with the resources that we have as a club in terms of players and the calibre of players (at the club). 
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“The fact that Chelsea has come in for him, am I surprised? Absolutely not. I think he deserves everything he gets and good luck to him.”
Powell and her team – who finished seventh in the top tier last season – travel to Arsenal’s Meadow Park home on Friday.
The 7:30 pm evening clash will be the first game of the 2022-23 WSL term following the postponement of last weekend’s opening fixtures following the death of Her Majesty The Queen.
On Monday, the FA announced WSL and Women’s Championship games would resume this week.
Powell’s side will take on the Gunners following the departures of seven senior figures and rising stars.
Players who left in the summer transfer window include Maya Le Tissier, 20, Ellie Brazil and Emma Koivisto, both 23.
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The Lionesses Under-23 aces and Finland full-back joined Manchester United, Tottenham and Liverpool.
Inessa Kaagman and Danique Kerkdijk sealed summer moves to Dutch clubs PSV Eindhoven and FC Twente.
And Dani Bowman, 33, joined West Ham’s coaching staff following her retirement after a five-year Seagulls spell.  
Meanwhile, Aileen Whelan, 31, joined Leicester on a free transfer in July following a
And her old team-mates Fliss Gibbons, 28, and Emily Simpkins, 32, sealed transfers to Championship sides Crystal Palace and Charlton.
This was probably the toughest transfer window yet.Hope Powell
Powell added: “Players leave for all sorts of reasons. With Inessa and Danique I think Covid had a massive part to play in that.
“Danique been away from home for five years and they told me very early on, that they will be going home so we expected that.
“With Maya, we did well to keep her last season.
“Chelsea came in for her back then and she was committed to the club, so it was no surprise that another club came in for her.
“Her head was turned with the prospect perhaps of Champions League and everything else that goes around with that.
“We did well to keep her last term. We are disappointed for ourselves but I’m pleased for her. She’s such a nice kid.
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“With Emma Koivisto – we didn’t see that coming. We wanted to engage (with her) and we engaged very early.
“She didn’t give much away so her move was a big surprise for us.
“We were sad to see them go, but this is football and some players will come, some will go.
“Now it’s just about now rebuilding and going again.”
Powell reckons this summer’s transfer window has been the toughest yet recruitment-wise with competition to sign emerging talent becoming more intense.
The Seagulls chief said: “It is really challenging. This was probably the toughest transfer window yet.
Maya Le Tissier is among the players who left Brighton this summerCredit: Getty
“There is a lot of young talent out there, not just in this country but abroad.
“But if they don’t meet certain GBE (government body endorsement from the FA) requirements, they can’t come in.
“They can’t get a work permit so it’s quite difficult.
“But it’s the same for everybody and it kind of narrows (the market).
“The biggest clubs can just buy and cherry pick so that talent pool kind of narrows down somewhat.
“But it is what it is, we can only control what we can control.
“There’s another winter transfer window and we’ll be looking again, but that’s the life of football.”
Brighton have bolstered their squad with five players joining the side before their Arsenal trip and first home game of the season against Reading.
Norway forward Elisabeth Terland is among the new players who joined Albion in the summer transfer windowCredit: Reuters
New arrivals include Poppy Pattinson signed from Everton and South Korea midfielder Yeeun Park, 25.
Norway striker Elisabeth Terland, 21, joined from her country’s top tier with a tally of 10 goals in 14 games for former club SK Brann this year.
And the Seagulls also welcome the return of Rebekah Stott following her recovery from stage 3 Hodgkin lymphoma.
The New Zealand international defender, who was diagnosed with blood cancer in March 2021, has been in remission for a year.
Powell is delighted to have Rebekah Stott return to BrightonCredit: Getty
Powell added: “It’s so lovely to have her back just because of who is first and foremost.
“When we talk about someone having cancer (and recovering) the football just pales into significance.
“The fact that she’s still with us she’s healthy, she’s happy to be back is the most important.” More