🌍 Weekend Landscape
Welcome to Matchweek 9 of the WSL preview. Chelsea and Manchester City are level on 22 points after eight matches, with Chelsea top on goal difference following their 6–0 win at Charlton. City remain alongside them after their 2–1 victory at London City, while London City stay third despite that defeat. Arsenal’s 1–1 draw with Aston Villa was their fourth draw in eight league matches, leaving them 12 points off the pace. Tottenham responded to three successive league defeats with a 4–1 win at Birmingham, while Charlton remain without a point after eight matches.
The weekend begins on Saturday as City host West Ham. Sunday opens with Aston Villa v Manchester United and Liverpool v Arsenal, before Chelsea host Everton. Palace v Charlton and Tottenham v Brighton follow, with London City v Birmingham completing the round. Arsenal travel to Anfield after their draw with Villa extended their winless home start to four league matches. Their recent win at Tottenham and 3–0 Champions League victory had suggested a turn, but Villa showed that the uncertainty around their season has not disappeared. London City will want an immediate response after last weekend’s defeat, Palace have the opportunity to create more distance at the bottom, while Spurs will look to build on their much-needed win at Birmingham.
Manchester City v West Ham United
Sat 7 Nov, 12:45 · Joie Stadium
Model: Manchester City 76% · Draw 15% · West Ham 9%
Most likely scorelines: 2–0 (9%) · 2–1 (9%) · 3–0 (9%)
Manchester City are level with Chelsea at the top after eight matches, and their 2–1 win at London City last weekend showed they can still find a way through a difficult afternoon. They remain unbeaten in the league, with seven wins and a draw, although their 10 goals conceded suggest they have not been entirely untouchable.
West Ham arrive with confidence after a 4–1 win over Liverpool, their most emphatic result of the season. It lifted them to three league wins, but they remain inconsistent: 14 goals conceded in eight matches is a reminder that their progress has not been straightforward.
City are strong favourites at home. West Ham have enough attacking threat to make this more competitive than the table might suggest, but they will need to be much more secure without the ball than they have been for long periods this season.
STAT TO WATCH | 22 goals, 22 points
City have scored 22 league goals and taken 22 points from a possible 24. West Ham’s win over Liverpool took them to nine points, but they have already conceded 14 times.
Aston Villa v Manchester United
Sun 8 Nov, 12:00 · Villa Park
Model: Aston Villa 15% · Draw 34% · Manchester United 51%
Most likely scorelines: 1–1 (12%) · 1–2 (9%) · 2–1 (7%)
Villa have quietly put together a four-match unbeaten league run. Wins over Liverpool and Everton were followed by last weekend’s 1–1 draw at Arsenal, where they defended for long periods but found a way to leave with a point. It has been a much steadier spell after their difficult start.
United are also unbeaten in six league matches after recovering from two opening defeats. However, their last two have finished level—1–1 with Manchester City and 0–0 at Everton—so the next step is to turn a more stable run into three points again.
United are favourites, but the draw is a serious part of this match. Villa have become much harder to beat and will take confidence from their result at Arsenal; United have the stronger overall record but need to find more cutting edge after two low-scoring draws.
STAT TO WATCH | Four unbeaten for Villa
Villa have taken eight points from their last four league matches after collecting only two from their opening four. United, meanwhile, have gone six league games without defeat.
Liverpool v Arsenal
Sun 8 Nov, 12:00 · Anfield
Model: Liverpool 15% · Draw 28% · Arsenal 57%
Most likely scorelines: 0–1 (16%) · 0–2 (13%) · 0–0 (12%)
Liverpool remain difficult to place. They have scored 13 league goals but taken only eight points, and last weekend’s 4–1 defeat at West Ham was another reminder of how quickly their matches can become open. A home game against Arsenal offers the chance for a response, but it is a demanding one.
Arsenal arrive after another frustrating draw at the Emirates. Their win at Tottenham and 3–0 Champions League victory had suggested that momentum was building, but Aston Villa left with a point despite Arsenal creating the clearer chances. They have now drawn four of their eight league matches, leaving little margin for further dropped points.
Arsenal are favourites, though Liverpool have enough attacking threat to make this uncomfortable if the game opens up. Liverpool need to turn their goal threat into a more controlled performance; Arsenal need the away win to prevent another draw from slowing their recovery.
STAT TO WATCH | 27 goals at both ends
Liverpool have scored 13 and conceded 14 league goals in eight matches. Their games have rarely lacked incident, but that openness has produced only two wins.
Chelsea v Everton
Sun 8 Nov, 12:45 · Stamford Bridge
Model: Chelsea 85% · Draw 12% · Everton 3%
Most likely scorelines: 2–0 (16%) · 3–0 (15%) · 1–0 (11%)
Chelsea have won seven league matches in a row since their opening-weekend draw, and last Sunday’s 6–0 victory at Charlton took them back to the top on goal difference. They have scored 27 league goals in eight matches and conceded only four, so Everton arrive facing the division’s most complete side so far.
Everton took a useful point from their 0–0 draw with Manchester United last weekend, but their wider league return remains modest: three wins, one draw and four defeats. Only seven goals in eight matches leaves little room for error, particularly against a Chelsea side that have been punishing teams when games open up.
Chelsea are overwhelming favourites, and the model leans towards a controlled home win. Everton will need the sort of defensive discipline they showed against United, then make far more of their limited attacking moments than most teams have managed against Chelsea this season.
STAT TO WATCH | Seven league wins in a row
Since drawing their opening match, Chelsea have won seven straight league games. Their last three have produced 15 goals, while Everton have scored seven across the whole league campaign.
Crystal Palace v Charlton Athletic
Sun 8 Nov, 14:00 · VBS Community Stadium
Model: Crystal Palace 46% · Draw 30% · Charlton 24%
Most likely scorelines: 1–1 (14%) · 1–0 (11%) · 0–0 (10%)
Palace have gone three league matches without a point after a more encouraging start to the season. Their defeat at Brighton last weekend followed losses to West Ham and Chelsea, so this is an opportunity to stop that run before the gap at the bottom becomes tighter.
Charlton remain without a league point after eight matches. Their last outing, a 6–0 defeat to Chelsea, underlined the scale of the challenge, but this is also one of the more realistic opportunities in their opening stretch to get something on the board.
Palace are favourites, but the model does not see this as a straightforward home win. Charlton need a performance that is more competitive for longer than some of their recent outings; Palace need to turn home advantage into the result that restarts their season.
STAT TO WATCH | Eight matches, no points
Charlton are still looking for their first point of the campaign. Palace have six points, but all of them came in their opening five league matches.
Tottenham Hotspur v Brighton
Sun 8 Nov, 14:00 · Brisbane Road
Model: Tottenham 35% · Draw 28% · Brighton 37%
Most likely scorelines: 1–1 (13%) · 1–2 (9%) · 2–1 (8%)
Tottenham’s 4–1 win at Birmingham last weekend was the response they needed after three successive league defeats. Their early-season attacking form has never really disappeared—they have 23 league goals already—but the three defeats exposed how quickly games can turn when they lose control defensively.
Brighton arrive with momentum of their own. Wins over West Ham and Crystal Palace have lifted them to 11 points, and they have scored 15 goals in eight league matches. Their 2–1 victory over Palace last weekend was not spectacular, but it was another example of a side finding results after a difficult opening month.
This looks like one of the more even fixtures of the weekend. Brighton are narrow model favourites, but Spurs have the home advantage and showed at Birmingham that their attack can still take a game away from an opponent. The key will be which side manages the defensive side of the contest better.
STAT TO WATCH | 38 goals between them
Tottenham have scored 23 league goals this season, while Brighton have scored 15. Both sides have enough attacking quality to make this an open match.
London City Lionesses v Birmingham City
Sun 8 Nov, 14:30 · CopperJax Community Stadium
Model: London City 72% · Draw 16% · Birmingham City 12%
Most likely scorelines: 3–1 (8%) · 2–1 (8%) · 3–0 (6%)
London City’s 2–1 defeat to Manchester City last weekend was their first home league loss of the season, but it did little to alter the broader picture. They remain third after five wins from eight matches, and they made City work hard for the result.
Birmingham arrive after a 4–1 defeat to Tottenham. They have scored 10 league goals already, which shows they can carry a threat, but 17 conceded in eight matches remains the issue. Their challenge is to make that attacking intent count without leaving the game too open at the other end.
London City are clear favourites at the CopperJax. Birmingham will need to stay compact early and make their moments in transition matter; if the match opens up, London City have the stronger attacking options and should create enough chances to take control.
STAT TO WATCH | 20 league goals
London City have scored 20 league goals in eight matches, behind only Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham.