Three FA Women's Super League matches will see Australians lock horns this weekend, while Ellie Carpenter's Lyon side face a growing task to regain their crown.
England
The London derby between Arsenal FC and West Ham United (Sunday 11pm AEDT) will showcase three Aussies: Mackenzie Arnold and Emily Van Egmond for the Irons and Caitlin Foord for the Gunners.
Both sides dropped important points in their last match, with Arsenal’s draw away at Reading creating a three-point gap between themselves and the top two.
During the week Van Egmond scored the first of West Ham’s three league cup goals against Durham, securing The Hammers a semi-final berth.
The second all-Westfield Matildas matchup of the weekend involves Alanna Kennedy’s Tottenham Hotspur playing host to Hayley Raso’s Everton FC (Monday 1:30am AEDT).
Spurs have been victorious in their last three, transitioning from a side in relegation danger, to a potential challenger for European spots. The Toffees, however, have been incredibly inconsistent after following up strong wins against title challengers with some heavy home defeats.
Rounding out the Australian matchups is Sam Kerr’s Chelsea FC, who travel to Chloe Logarzo’s Bristol City (Monday 1am AEDT). Two sides whose fortunes could not be more different, Chelsea’s victory over Manchester United has given them a healthy three-point gap at the top of the table.
Bristol however, head into the match desperately needing to regain the form seen in the league cup, with Logarzo’s team still winless after 11 matches and now rooted to the bottom.
During the week, Kerr and Chelsea recorded a 4-2 League Cup victory away at Manchester City, progressing the current Super League leaders toward another cup semi-final to be played on February 3rd.
France
Ellie Carpenter’s Olympque Lyonnais are finding the challenge of knocking off PSG at the top of the Feminine Division 1 more difficult than expected. Heading into the match against Paris FC (Saturday 4:30am AEDT), the European champions have been almost faultless with 11 wins from 12 matches, however, still sit just one point from first place.
Meanwhile, Mary Fowler’s Montpellier were far from faultless in their last outing, losing 4-1 to Guingamp, inflicting a blow to their European hopes. Fowler’s side will need to emerge victorious at home to Fleury 91 (Sunday 12:30am AEDT) if they intend to keep their European dream alive.
Spain
Aivi Luik and Sevilla FC head to the Spanish capital to face Alex Chidiac’s former side Atletico Madrid (Sunday 11pm AEDT). The Seville outfit are undefeated in their last three matches and will look to consolidate their position within the top half of the Primera Division.
