Women’s Super League: Tottenham v Manchester City, Crystal Palace v Liverpool and more – live | Women’s Super League

Fujino restores Manchester City’s lead!

Casparij sends a throw to Hasegawa, who is given plenty of time to tee up a perfect pass to Fujino. The midfielder splits the Spurs defence with the ball and Fujino latches onto the end of it. The winger then flicks the ball past Bartrip, putting the defender off-balance before firing her shot into the top-left corner.

Brilliant from both Fujino and Hasegawa!

72 min: We’re into the final 20 minutes of the 2pm games.

Tottenham 1-1 Manchester City: What a clearance from Neville! A corner is sent into the box and Miedema is there to head the ball towards goal. It looks to be floating over the line but Neville gets there in the nick of time to make an outstanding clearance!

Olislagers levels things up for the hosts!

The wing-back latches onto a diagonal ball and makes a run into the box before firing a low-driven shot past Hampton!

The visitors double their advantage at Villa Park through Hayashi!

It’s an absolute nightmare for Talbert, who fails to catch a floating cross. The ball subsequently spills into the path of Hayashi, who fires her shot into the top-right corner on the turn.

What a strike from Baltimore!

James sends a cross into the box, Nüsken is able to flick it on and Baltimore is there to volley the ball into the top-right corner! A perfectly-taken shot from the full-back!

Aston Villa 0-1 Everton: Villa have been forced into a change, with Katelin Talbert on to replace D’Angelo, who has been forced off with a head injury. The goalkeeper is nursing a nose bleed while making her way off.

Brighton 0-0 Chelsea: The visitors have announced that Niamh Charles has withdrawn from the squad. She has been replaced by academy graduate Chloe Sarwie on the bench.

Tottenham 1-1 Manchester City: Both England and Yamashita require treatment following a collision in the box.

All three 2pm games are back up and running!

We’re under way at the Broadfield Stadium!

Manchester United manager Marc Skinner tells BBC Sport: “I was [pleased with the performance], first half especially. I felt we might fall off a little bit second half because we have only had two days from international duty. Winners find a way to win and we have done that. We have already accrued more points now with seven games to go than we did last season.”

In case you missed it, Becky Spencer joined Chelsea on an emergency loan yesterday. The goalkeeper was allowed to make the switch after January signing Femke Liefting suffered a long-term foot injury during the international break.

Spencer starts on the bench for the Blues today.

35 min: Just over 10 minutes to play until half-time across the 2pm fixtures.

Naomi Girma makes her first Chelsea start!

Brighton starting line-up: Melina Loeck; Maria Thorisdottir, Guro Bergsvand, Poppy Pattinson; Rachel McLauchlan, Vicky Losada (C), Marisa Olislagers, Nadine Noordam; Fran Kirby, Madison Haley, Nikita Parris. Substitutes: Sophie Baggaley, Pauline Bremer, Kiko Seike, Caitlin Hayes, Dejana Stefanović, Michelle Agyemang, Jessica Pegram.

Chelsea starting line-up: Hannah Hampton; Lucy Bronze, Millie Bright (C), Naomi Girma, Sandy Baltimore; Wieke Kaptein, Keira Walsh; Sjoeke Nüsken, Johanna Rytting Kaneryd, Lauren James; Aggie Beever-Jones. Substitutes: Becky Spencer, Ashley Lawrence, Niamh Charles, Nathalie Björn, Lola Brown, Vera Jones, Oriane Jean-François, Catarina Macario, Mayra Ramírez.

England gets the equaliser for Spurs!

The striker steals the ball from Aleixandri on the edge of the Manchester City box before laying it off to Holdt, who plays it back. England then picks up possession again before firing her shot into the top-left corner!

28 min: Tottenham suffer a huge injury blow as Thomas is forced off with what appears to be a knock to her ankle. She is replaced by Olivia Holdt.

It’s another win and another clean sheet for United!

20 min: All three away teams lead at the 20-minute mark!

Mjelde gives Everton the advantage!

The ball is set short to Payne just outside the box. The forward takes a touch before looking to cross, but her effort deflects upwards off Robinson. Aston Villa make a poor attempt to clear, with Baijings letting the ball run past her and straight to Mjelde, who fires her shot past D’Angelo and into the net.

85 min: Five minutes of normal time remaining at Leigh Sports Village.

Miedema strikes for City!

Fujino links up with Blindkilde Brown on the right before making a run down the wing and crossing the ball into the box. Miedema is there and heads into the top-right corner.

Liverpool break the deadlock!

A corner is sent into the box and Palace fail to make the clearance. The ball eventually falls to Bonner, who goes for goal, but her effort is blocked by Matthews. The midfielder is given time to shoot herself and fires home from close range.

All three 2pm games are underway!

69 min: Bott rattles the crossbar for Leicester! The visitors are starting to grow into this match, but it could be too late.

Brighton vs Chelsea team news is coming up shortly…

Naomi Girma, the world’s most expensive female player, is expected to be in the Chelsea squad.

62 min: Another two changes for Leicester at Leigh Sports Village as Chossenotte and Cayman make way for Shannon O’Brien and Hannah Cain.

54 min: Leicester have made one change in an attempt to get back in the game, with Yüka Momiki replacing Eiríksdóttir.

Crystal Palace also shocked fans during the week by sacking promotion-winning head coach Laura Kaminski. The club’s chairman, Steve Parish, described the decision to dismiss Kaminski as “extremely difficult” with Palace bottom of the table. Norwegian coach Leif Smerud has since been appointed as the new Crystal Palace manager.

Liverpool parted company with their manager, Matt Beard, on Thursday. Beard is understood to have held talks with the club over a long period and a conclusion was reached that the 47-year-old had taken the team as far as he could. The Reds currently sit seventh in the WSL table.

We’re back underway at Leigh Sports Village!

Crystal Palace starting line-up: Shae Yanez; Indiah-Paige Riley, Josie Green, Allyson Swaby, Lily Woodham; My Cato, Lexi Potter, Annabel Blanchard, Abbie Larkin; Clarissa Larisey, Ashleigh Weerden. Substitutes: Felicity Gibbons, Chloe Arthur, Molly-Mae Sharpe, Elise Hughes, Ria Öling, Milla-Maj Majasaari, Aniek Nouwen, Isibeal Atkinson.

Liverpool starting line-up: Rachael Laws; Grace Fisk, Gemma Bonner, Jasmine Matthews; Taylor Hinds, Ceri Holland, Sam Kerr, Marie Höbinger, Cornelia Kapocs; Sophie Román Haug, Olivia Smith. Substitutes: Lucy Parry, Gemma Evans, Fuka Nagano, Mia Enderby, Teagan Micah, Jenna Clark, Júlia Bartel, Yana Daniels, Zara Julie Shaw.

Team news for Crystal Palace vs Liverpool is also on its way…

Aston Villa starting line-up: Sabrina D’Angelo; Sarah Mayling, Anna Patten, Danielle Turner, Noelle Maritz; Miri Taylor, Jill Baijings, Jordan Nobbs; Chasity Grant, Katie Robinson, Rachel Daly (C). Substitutes: Katelin Talbert, Paula Tomás, Lucy Parker, Missy Bo Kearns, Kirsty Hanson, Ebony Salmon, Gabi Nunes.

Everton starting line-up: Courtney Brosnan; Maren Mjelde, Martina Fernandez, Elise Stenevik, Sara Holmgaard; Honoka Hayashi, Hayley Ladd, Heather Payne, Kelly Gago; Katja Snoeijs; Toni Payne. Substitutes: Emily Ramsey, Justine Vanhaevermaet, Melissa Lawley, Lucy Hope, Emma Watson, Veatriki Sarri, Karen Holmgaard, Karoline Olesen.

The hosts have a comfortable lead at the break thanks to goals from Malard and Galton.

Galton doubles United’s lead!

Janssen starts the attack in midfield, playing the ball forward to Toone. The England star then sets it to Malard on the edge of the box, who threads a clever pass through to Galton. The winger then simply taps it past Leitzig and into the net from the edge of the six-yard box.

45+1 min: Three minutes have been added on at Leigh Sports Village.

42 min: George steps up to take the free kick but her effort flies over the crossbar.

40 min: Manchester United are still in a commanding position at Leigh Sports Village. Five minutes to go until half-time and the hosts have a free kick in a dangerous position.

Tottenham starting line-up: Lize Kop; Ashleigh Neville, Molly Bartrip, Luana Bühler, Ella Morris; Charli Grant, Eveliina Summanen, Drew Spence, Matilda Vinberg; Martha Thomas, Bethany England (C). Substitutes: Eleanor Heeps, Josefine Rybrink, Amanda Nildén, Anna Csiki, Maite Oroz, Olivia Holdt, Rosella Ayane, Jessica Naz, Lenna Gunning-Williams.

Manchester City starting line-up: Ayaka Yamashita; Naomi Layzell, Laia Aleixandri, Leila Ouahabi, Kerstin Casparij; Yui Hasegawa, Laura Blindkilde Brown, Vivianne Miedema; Aoba Fujino, Khadija Shaw, Kerolin. Khiara Keating, Mary Fowler, Jill Roord, Laura Wienroither, Jess Park, Gracie Prior, Aemu Oyama, Lily Murphy, Mayzee Davies.

Team news for Tottenham vs Manchester City and Aston Villa vs Everton is about to drop…

22 min: United appeal for a penalty after the ball bounces up and hits Tierney’s arm, but nothing is given and play continues.

Malard breaks the deadlock for United!

An attack that was made fairly straightforward for the hosts. Le Tissier starts with the ball in defence before playing a pass straight to Toone in the middle. The midfielder then turns before sending a through ball to Malard, who makes her way into the box and shrugs off her defender before faking a shot, sitting Leitzig down and slotting the ball away.

Two passes and a goal! Great from Marc Skinner’s side.

13 min: Toone goes for goal from the edge of the box, but her effort floats over the crossbar.

9 min: Leicester forward Chossenotte is okay to continue playing for now.

8 min: Some concern for Leicester now as Chossenotte goes down with what appears to be an ankle injury following a challenge from George.

4 min: It’s been all Manchester United so far at Leigh Sports Village. The hosts are dominating possession and threatening around Leicester’s box. Janssen takes the first shot of the clash, but her effort flies over the crossbar.

The first match of the day is under way at Leigh Sports Village!

Rick has emailed in with his view on the proposed change to the WSL format…

“The proposal to grow the WSL by adding teams each season by eliminating relegation to arrive at perhaps an 18 team top division by 2030 and a similar sized WSL 2 is all very well, but the main problem is the massive funding gap that has already opened up with Chelsea already having turned the WSL into a one team league.

“I’m afraid that women’s football is now mainly money driven and with that will come the professionalism aka cheating that has spoiled the men’s game.

“Unless a more radical restructuring is introduced to stop a small number of top clubs dominating the WSL financially then wishful thinking this can be avoided by reducing risk to investors is delusional.

“Has anyone had a look at what safeguards are in place to stop the wrong people buying in to women’s football?”

A reminder of today’s WSL fixtures…

• Manchester United vs Leicester

• Aston Villa vs Everton

• Tottenham vs Manchester City

• Crystal Palace vs Liverpool

• Brighton vs Chelsea

• Arsenal vs West Ham

Here is what some WSL managers had to say about the proposed scrapping of relegation…

Robert Vilahamn: “I definitely want to have a relegation battle. You need competition up and down in the table. If it’s for one or two years to make sure we can have a big investment in those teams, show me the case, what they think about it and then we can listen. I think the fans want to see games where you compete up and down in the leagues.”

Gareth Taylor: “I have always had this thing of potentially making the league bigger, more teams, 14, 16 teams I think it would change a lot, would create more competition within it. On first visual of looking at that piece this morning around no relegation, I can completely understand the reasons why, because it allows stability a little bit for those clubs to invest and create more competition. There’s positive and negative to both things. I think sometimes I’ve always been about keeping it simple. I think promotion and relegation are always going to be what supporters and teams play for and crave. I think that really is going to be difficult to move away from that.”

Renee Slegers: “I think there’s a reason why most competitions work like that in different countries, because you want to have that competitive element. But at the same time, the decision makers on this have more detail and more knowledge. I understand that there needs to be a foundation and levels of professionalism to be able to provide the quality that we need in women’s football.”

The Guardian exclusively revealed this week that the WSL is considering the possibility of abolishing relegation as part of a radical proposal to grow the sport. The 23 WSL and Championship clubs were called to a meeting by Women’s Professional Leagues Ltd on Friday whereby they were asked to explore a range of options to increase the profile, sustainability and profitability of women’s football. The outcome of that meeting is yet to be revealed.

What are your thoughts on the proposal? Feel free to get in touch this afternoon. I want to hear from you!

Manchester United are missing Jayde Riviere, Elisabeth Terland and Simi Awujo today. Lisa Naalsund and Anna Sandberg are also unavailable for the hosts.

As for Leicester, Deanne Rose is back in the matchday squad, while Lena Petermann Noemie Mouchon and Jutta Rantala remain absent. Karla Torres has dropped out of the squad.

Manchester United starting line-up: Phallon Tullis-Joyce; Gabby George, Maya Le Tissier (C), Millie Turner, Aoife Mannion; Grace Clinton, Dominique Janssen, Ella Toone; Celin Bizet, Melvine Malard, Leah Galton. Substitutes: Safia Middleton-Patel, Kayla Rendell, Scarlett Hill, Tamira Livingston, Mared Griffiths, Hinata Miyazawa, Geyse, Rachel Williams.

Leicester starting line-up: Janina Leitzig; Asmita Ale, Sophie Howard, Julie Thibaud, C.J. Bott; Sam Tierney, Ruby Mace; Shana Chossenotte, Missy Goodwin, Janice Cayman (C), Hlín Eiríksdóttir. Substitutes: Olivia Clark, Courtney Nevin, Chantelle Swaby, Saori Takarada, Yuka Momiki, Hannah Cain, Nelly Las, Deanne Rose, Shannon O’Brien.

What a week it’s been in women’s football.

From managerial incomings and outgoings to proposed format changes that would alter the pyramid completely, it feels like we’ve seen it all. We’ll talk about those things a bit later, but for now the focus is on today’s six Women’s Super League fixtures.

To kick things off, Manchester United host Leicester City at Leigh Sports Village. Then, Aston Villa take on Everton while Tottenham face Manchester City. Brighton go head-to-head with league leaders Chelsea before Arsenal meet West Ham for a London Derby this evening.

Perhaps the most interesting fixture of the day, however, is Crystal Palace vs Liverpool. Both clubs sacked their respective managers earlier this week, which came as a huge shock to fans. While Liverpool are yet to find a permanent successor to Matt Beard, Norwegian coach Leif Smerud has replaced Laura Kaminski at Palace. The question is – will the London side get that ‘new manager bounce’ this afternoon?

Join me!