Chelsea vs. Manchester United, Women's Super League: Preview, team news, how to watch
Today at 02:39 AM
Just keep winning!
Chelsea made it eleven wins out of eleven under new manager Sonia Bompastor, and now have a chance for an even dozen as Manchester United come to town for a Sunday high noon showdown.
The Blues took control of the WSL title race with a momentous 2-0 win over Manchester City last weekend, but the manager wants not only silverware but an unbeaten season as well.
'It's a big motivation. To make sure we prepare for the game in a good way and to make sure we will be the team on Sunday to stay unbeaten. It brings an extra motivation because we want to show we are able to beat every team. This is the mentality you have to have if you want to win everything."
-Sonia Bompastor; source: Chelsea FC
Every. Thing.
Date / Time: Sunday, November 24, 2024, 12.00 GMT; 7am EST
Venue: Kingsmeadow, Kingston upon Thames
Referee: Emily Heaslip
Forecast: more wind, more rain
On TV: Sky Sports Main Event (UK); none (USA); elsewhere
Streaming: Sky Go (UK); ESPN+ (USA)
Chelsea team news: The injury situation has improved marginally, with Catarina Macario making her first start of the season midweek. However, fellow forwards Sam Kerr, Lauren James, and Mia Fishel remain out, joining Aniek Nouwen, Niamh Charles, Sophie Ingle, and our most recent ACL-victim, Kadeisha Buchanan. (That's six in the last year for us, if you're counting.)
We're not only keeping winning, recently we've also done it without conceding goals: four clean sheets in our last five games in all competitions, while scoring 15 at the other end. Chelsea are the division's top scorers by a fair margin, but United own the meanest defense, having conceded just twice in their seven games so far (we conceded three in eight).
Manchester United team news: Given their stellar defensive record, it's perhaps unsurprising that United are, like Chelsea, also unbeaten in the league so far — but with just four wins and three draws, which is good for only fifth (albeit with a game in-hand and a chance to go as high as third today).
Manager Marc Skinner has called this the "toughest test in Europe", though he will have a largely fit and available squad to choose from, with only striker Elisabeth Terland and midfielder Ella Toone set to miss out. Defender Aoife Mannion is questionable.
Previously: Chelsea were eliminated from the FA Cup semifinals by Manchester United last season, but otherwise, our record against them is nearly spotless (11 wins from 13 ever played).
