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Yara El-Shaboury

Nov 16, 2020

Manchester Derby Ends in Draw

BARNET, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 10: Tobin Heath of Manchester United during the Barclays FA Women’s Super League match between Tottenham Hotspur Women and Manchester United Women at The Hive on October 10, 2020 in Barnet, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
MATCH INFO:

Manchester United 2, Manchester City 2 (Highlights)

Goals: Chloe Kelly – 8’, Laura Coombs – 45+1’, Tobin Heath – 54’, Kirsty Hanson – 74’

A game of two halves would be the best description of the Manchester Derby, with Manchester City dominating the first half against Manchester United, and then the two flipping roles in the second. With a two-goal lead at halftime, City seemed to take their foot off the gas, and their FAWSL rivals capitalized. Having fixed their tactical errors from the first half, United were able to tie up the game with a pair of goals. And while both teams went home with a point apiece, Manchester City will obviously feel more frustrated with the result.

Here’s how the action unfolded:

Manchester United went into the match at the top of the table after beating Arsenal last week, and Manchester City were two points within them in fifth place after an 8-1 thrashing against Bristol City.

The match started quickly with both sides getting a couple of early chances, but it was City who capitalized first. Mary Earps’ loose pass allowed City to win the first corner of the match, and after some scrambling in the box from United’s defense, who could not clear the ball properly, it was City’s Chloe Kelly that gave her side the lead.

From then United seemed to capitulate in defense, and City had chance after chance.

In particular, United struggled immensely with Georgia Stanway, with Ona Batlle having a tough time in her 1v1 matchup. Batlle would often play well into Manchester City’s half when her team was in possession and would press high when United were out of possession. The problem was that City, despite their flaws, are one of the best teams in the league when it comes to transitioning from defense to attack. United were unable to cope with these transitions, and Stanway would often receive the ball in wide-open space with Batlle still running back.

United’s lack of agility during these transitions allowed City numerous shots, including a second goal scored by Laura Coombs, which came after Sam Mewis’ initial shot was blocked. The ball landed at Coombs’ feet, where she took a touch to create space and scored from outside the box.

By halftime, City’s tactic of quickly getting in behind and using the transitions was clearly advantageous in their favor, with 14 shots to United’s two. A significant lead at the time, but in hindsight, they should have been kicking themselves for not extending it.

In the second half, Manchester United rectified their mistakes and were much tighter in the back. A half-time substitute saw Jessica Sigsworth come off for Kirsty Hanson. In the first half, Sigsworth was doing little to help out Batlle defensively. It’s clear that Casey Stoney saw that Hanson could offer more on both ends of the pitch.

United were not only tighter in the back, but much more aggressive while attacking. Unlike the first half, they were not giving away cheap opportunities for City to press them. In fact, it was almost as if both teams switched their style of play. Manchester United’s first goal came from Lucy Bronze’s sloppy passing from the back. Tobin Heath was able to intercept the ball and hit a searing strike into the back of the net.

United’s second came from the substitute, Hanson. A corner rebounded straight into her path, and despite the clustered penalty area, Hansen was able to get the shot off for the equalizer.

Hanson was the epitome of a super-sub for Manchester United. Not only did she score the goal, but she was able to stabilize the right side of the defense that United struggled with in the first half.

Gareth Taylor did not make a substitution until United’s second goal, which was part of the reason his team lost a lot of their momentum in the second half. As much as United improved in the second half, City helped them by not matching the intensity they showcased in the first. Earlier substitutes could have prevented United from getting back into the game.

United were almost able to grab the winner right at the 90th minute, but Demi Stokes was able to clear it off the line despite it getting past the hands of Earps. A fortunate break for Manchester City.

The derby came to an end with both sides earning a point. The good news is that viewers won’t have to wait long for a rematch, as the two sides are up against each other again in the Conti Cup this Thursday. For now, both teams remain in first and fifth in the table respectively.

WHAT’S NEXT IN THE FA WSL:

 

December 5th 

Aston Villa vs. Manchester United @ 7:30 a.m. EST

December 6th 

Everton vs. Manchester City @ 8:00 a.m. EST

Arsenal vs. Birmingham City @ 9:00 a.m. EST

Chelsea vs. West Ham @  9:00 a.m. EST

Tottenham vs. Brighton & Hove Albion @ 9:00 a.m. EST

Reading F.C. vs. Bristol City @ 9:00 a.m. EST

December 12th

Bristol City vs. Aston Villa @ 2:30 p.m. EST

Meredith Heil

May 1, 2024

USWNT Vet Carli Lloyd Announces Pregnancy After ‘Rollercoaster’ IVF Journey

retired soccer player carli lloyd
Lloyd will welcome her first child with husband Brian Hollins this October. (Dennis Schneidler/USA TODAY Sports)

Longtime USWNT fixture Carli Lloyd took to Instagram Wednesday morning to announce that she’s pregnant with her first child. 

"Baby Hollins coming in October 2024!" she wrote. The caption framed a collaged image of baby clothes, an ultrasound photo, and syringes indicating what she described as a "rollercoaster" fertility journey.

In a Women’s Health story published in tandem with Lloyd’s post, the Fox Sports analyst and correspondent opened up about her struggles with infertility and the lengthy IVF treatments she kept hidden from the public eye.

"Soccer taught me how to work hard, persevere, be resilient, and never give up. I would do whatever it took to prepare, and usually when I prepared, I got results," Lloyd told Women’s Health’s Amanda Lucci. "But I found out that I didn’t know much about this world. I was very naive to think that we wouldn’t have any issues getting pregnant. And so it began."

Lloyd went on to discuss her road to pregnancy in great detail, sharing the highs and lows of the process and expressing gratitude for the care and support her family and medical team provided along the way. She rounded out the piece with a nod toward others navigating the same challenges, encouraging people to share their own pregnancy journeys, painful as they may be.

"My story is currently a happy one, but I know there are other women who are facing challenges in their pregnancy journey. I see you and I understand your pain," she said. "My hope is that more and more women will speak up about this topic, because their stories helped me. I also wish for more resources, funding, and education around fertility treatments. There is much to be done, and I hope I can play a role in helping."

The 41-year-old New Jersey native retired from professional soccer in 2021, closing out her decorated career with 316 international appearances, the second-most in USWNT history, in addition to 134 international goals. A legend on the field, Lloyd walked away from the game with two World Cups, two Olympic gold medals, and two FIFA Player of the Year awards.

Meredith Heil

May 1, 2024

Project ACL addresses injury epidemic in women’s football

arsenal's laura wienroither being helped off the field after tearing her acl
Arsenal's Laura Wienroither tore her ACL during a Champions League semifinal in May 2023. (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

On Tuesday, FIFPRO announced the launch of Project ACL, a three-year research initiative designed to address a steep uptick in ACL injuries across women's professional football.

Project ACL is a joint venture between FIFPRO, England’s Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA), Nike, and Leeds Beckett University. While the central case study will focus on England’s top-flight Women's Super League, the findings will be distributed around the world.

ACL tears are between two- and six-times more likely to occur in women footballers than men, according to The Guardian. And with both domestic and international programming on the rise for the women’s game, we’ve seen some of the sport's biggest names moved to the season-ending injury list with ACL-related knocks.

Soccer superstars like Vivianne Miedema, Beth Mead, Catarina Macario, Marta, and England captain Leah Williamson have all struggled with their ACLs in recent years, though all have since returned to the field. In January, Chelsea and Australia forward Sam Kerr was herself sidelined with the injury, kicking off a year of similar cases across women’s professional leagues. And just yesterday, the Spirit announced defender Anna Heilferty would miss the rest of the NWSL season with a torn ACL. The news comes less than two weeks after Bay FC captain Alex Loera went down with the same injury. 

Project ACL will closely study players in the WSL, monitoring travel, training, and recovery practices to look for trends that could be used to prevent the injury in the future. Availability of sports science and medical resources within individual clubs will be taken into account throughout the process.

ACL injuries in women's football have long outpaced the same injury in the men's game, but resources for specialized prevention and treatment still lag behind. Investment in achieving a deeper, more specialized understanding of the problem should hopefully alleviate the issue both on and off the field.

Meredith Heil

Apr 30, 2024

USC enters superteam era with transfer portal gains 

Oregon State transfer and USC recruit Talia von Oelhoffen at 2024 NCAA women's tournament
Oregon State transfer Talia von Oelhoffen adds fuel to USC's 2025 NCAA title dreams. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)

With recent transfers Talia von Oelhoffen and Kiki Iriafen joining first-team All-American JuJu Watkins and the nation’s No. 1 recruiting class at USC next season, the Trojans look to transition from an up-and-coming squad to a legitimate title contender. 

Former Oregon State graduate student von Oelhoffen is the latest collegiate talent to commit to the program, announcing her transfer Monday via ESPN. She follows ex-Stanford leading-scorer Iriafen in the jump to the pair’s one-time Pac-12 rival.

The 5-foot-11 Washington native was a two-time All-Pac-12 guard during her time at Oregon State. But after the recent dissolution of the Pac-12, the Corvallis side found themselves without a permanent home conference going forward. Many big name players opted to take their skill elsewhere as a result, with von Oelhoffen’s fellow ex-Beaver Raegan Beers announcing her own departure to Oklahoma on Monday.

According to DraftKings, USC is now tied with UConn for the second-best betting odds to win the 2025 NCAA women’s tournament. Dawn Staley’s tested South Carolina side, poised for a repeat performance, holds down the number one spot.

Last year, LSU loaded up in the transfer portal after beating Iowa to win the 2023 national championship. The Tigers were clear favorites coming into the 2023-24 season, but were bounced in the Elite Eight by Caitlin Clark’s Hawkeyes. Shortly thereafter, star transfer Hailey Van Lith opted to transfer a second time, this time signing with TCU. 

Yet while history proves that an excess of star power doesn’t always translate to on-court chemistry, on paper, USC sure looks ready to hold their own — in 2025 and beyond.

Meredith Heil

Apr 30, 2024

U.S., Mexico drop bid to host 2027 Women’s World Cup 

uswnt fans cheer at 2023 fifa women's world cup in australia
USWNT fans will have to settle for cheering on their home team from abroad in 2027. (Brad Smith/USSF/Getty Images for USSF)

The United States and Mexico have withdrawn their joint bid to host the 2027 Women’s World Cup, per a Monday afternoon release from U.S. Soccer and the Mexican Football Federation.

According to the statement, they will instead focus on developing a "more equitable" bid for the 2031 tournament, with the ultimate goal of "eliminating investment disparities" between the men’s and women’s tournaments.

The federations went on to cite the upcoming 2026 Men’s World Cup in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico as an opportunity to build support for local infrastructure, improve audience engagement, and scale up media and partnership deals in preparation to "host a record-breaking tournament in 2031."

"Hosting a World Cup tournament is a huge undertaking — and having additional time to prepare allows us to maximize its impact across the globe," said U.S. Soccer President Cindy Parlow Cone. "Shifting our bid will enable us to host a record-breaking Women’s World Cup in 2031 that will help to grow and raise the level of the women’s game both here at home as well as across the globe."

The decision leaves just Brazil and a joint bid from Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands in the running for the 2027 host spot. Brazil — the rumored frontrunner — has never hosted a Women’s World Cup, while Germany hosted the 2011 tournament as a solo venture. 

Furthermore, this postponement doesn’t mean the U.S. is a shoo-in for 2031, as it's been previously reported that 2022 UEFA Women's EURO host England is considering their own Women's World Cup bid. FIFA is scheduled to confirm the winning bid after the FIFA Congress votes on May 17th.

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