The Women's Super League kicks off on Friday evening when Manchester United Women host Reading Women at Leigh Sports Village, the first WSL game to be shown live on Sky Sports as a new era begins.
Marc Skinner will be looking to improve on Man United's consecutive fourth-placed finishes from their first two seasons in the top flight, while Kelly Chambers's side recorded their lowest finish since 2016 during the 2020-21 campaign.
Match preview
© Reuters
The Red Devils finished their preparation for the upcoming season with a friendly against Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday, and the two teams played out a 1-1 draw at Loughborough University.
United's captain Katie Zelem gave her side the lead with a direct free kick heading into half time, but the Seagulls levelled the score shortly after the restart.
That match was Skinner's side's third of pre season, previously beating Aston Villa and Rangers, giving the team full confidence heading into the domestic campaign.
Skinner arrived at the club at the end of July, taking over from Casey Stoney, and he does have experience of working in the WSL prior to now when he worked at Birmingham City.
Man United will have aspirations to qualify for the Champions League, having only missed out on third spot in the WSL by one point to Arsenal last season.
Reading finished the 2020-21 campaign in seventh spot, after only winning one game in their last eight fixtures of the league season.
Chambers's side were given a boost this summer as they moved their training base to Bearwood Park, where the men's team and academy train, and the manager has said that the facilities have risen the standards of professionalism.
The Royals are also pleased that they will be playing their home fixtures at the Select Car Leasing Stadium for the second season running, and the side are looking forward to welcoming fans back when they face Arsenal on September 12.
Looking ahead to this clash against Man United, Reading will be aiming to emulate their last result against the Red Devils when they won 2-0 away from home thanks to quickfire goals from Natasha Harding and Danielle Carter.
- W
- W
- D
Team News
© Reuters
Man United have been busy in the transfer market, securing the signings of Hannah Blundell, Sophie Baggaley, Aoife Mannion and Martha Thomas.
However, the club have also seen several players depart including Jane Ross, Abbie McManus, Christen Press, Tobin Heath and Lauren James.
Ella Toone was Man United's top goalscorer last season, but Press, Heath and James were big goal threats for the Red Devils last season so there is more pressure on Leah Galton to find the back of the net.
Reading also saw many players leave the club this summer, including Fara Williams, Angharad James, Molly Bartrip and Lauren Bruton.
Chambers has bolstered her squad with the signings of Natasha Dowie, Gemma Evans, Faye Bryson, Chloe Peplow and most recently, Belgian international Justine Vanhaevermaet.
Royals goalkeeper Grace Moloney earned both the Player of the Year and Players' Player award last season and she will be looking to carry on her good performances starting the season off with a clean sheet.
Manchester United Women possible starting lineup:
Earps; Thorisdottir, Turner, Mannion, Blundell; Boe Risa, Zelem, Staniforth; Hanson, Toone, Galton
Reading Women possible starting lineup:
Moloney; Mitchell, Evans, Cooper, Bryson; Vanhaevermaet, Jeon, Eikeland, Chaplen, Peplow; Dowie
We say: Manchester United Women 2-1 Reading Women
Manchester United will want to get three points on the board early as they begin their challenge for the WSL title, and being at home on the opening day will give them an advantage.
Reading have been boosted with their pre-season preparations and their move to Bearwood Park, but on this occasion, Skinner's side should take the three points after a successful pre-season themselves.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Manchester United Women win with a probability of 59.79%. A draw had a probability of 21.6% and a win for Reading Women had a probability of 18.57%.
The most likely scoreline for a Manchester United Women win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.39%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (10.11%) and 2-1 (9.95%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (10.22%), while for a Reading Women win it was 0-1 (5.26%). The actual scoreline of 2-0 was predicted with a 10.1% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Manchester United Women would win this match.
