Women's Super League

Emma Sanders
BBC Sport women’s football news reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Arsenal forward Chloe Kelly will use the 'fire inside her' in the right way when she faces her former club Manchester City on Saturday despite leaving on controversial terms, says manager Renee Slegers.

Kelly claimed some at City had tried to "assassinate her character" and she posted several damning opinions on social media during a rollercoaster transfer saga in January which ultimately saw her join Arsenal on loan.

She moved to Arsenal permanently in July after a successful Euro 2025 with England and having won the Champions League with the Gunners in May.

"Chloe has gone through a lot of things in her footballing career and she is now representing us, which we are very proud of," added Slegers.

"I think she will find the right levels. What is special about Chloe is that she has fire inside her. When she uses it in the right way – which she has been doing – it creates so much for herself and the team. That will be no different [on Saturday].

"She is of course very happy to represent Arsenal but I'm sure she'll be happy to go there and see people she was with for a very long time."

Emma Sanders
BBC Sport women’s football news reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Liverpool want to add points "as quickly as possible" having failed to pick up a result so far in the Women's Super League, says manager Gareth Taylor.

The Reds have lost their opening three matches and sit second bottom in the table, albeit having played a game less due to the postponement of their game against Aston Villa on 21 September.

Taylor took over as head coach at Liverpool in August after five years with Manchester City.

"It's tough but we are starting to see signs here [at Melwood] and in some of the games. It does take time," said Taylor.

"I never felt, even in pre-season, that it would be a quick fix. Sometimes results can give you a false idea of where you are.

"Even if we were sat here with four points or even six, I don't think my mindset would be different in terms of where we need to improve to get better.

"We are sat here unfortunately with zero points and we want to change that as quickly as possible. We know what we have to do in games to be in the right space.

"We also understand that this can be part of the process when we are making differences to the playing style."

Emma Sanders
BBC Sport women’s football news reporter

Image source, Getty Images

London City Lionesses' tough start to the Women's Super League season has "made us grow up", says manager Jocelyn Precheur.

The newly-promoted side faced three of the league's top four in their opening four fixtures, losing against Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City.

However, they picked up a valuable three points at Goodison Park when they beat Everton 2-1 in September.

They host Liverpool in their next WSL game on Sunday (11:55 BST).

"We knew it would be tough. Firstly, being promoted and adapting to the WSL is a challenge," said Precheur.

"When you play the majority of the games at the beginning of the season against the top four, it is even more difficult. But it is probably the best way to learn and to adapt fast.

"We want to be able to one day compete and reach this level. In September we had a big chance to evaluate the gap between our level at the moment and where we want to go to in the future.

"We took many lessons from all of these games. It made us grow up, I have no doubt about it. Now we need to compete in this league."

Emma Smith
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

West Ham manager Rehanne Skinner says she is "not worried about the table" despite her side being bottom of the Women's Super League without any points.

The Hammers have lost all four of their league games so far, have the worst goal difference and the joint-worst goals conceded record.

A 4-0 home defeat by Chelsea last week means West Ham have conceded 14 goals in four games.

They face Aston Villa, one of three WSL teams without a victory so far, on Sunday - but Skinner says it is not a must-win game.

"I am not worried about the table - we know there is a clear top four in the league, then everyone else," she told her media conference on Thursday.

"We have not started the season how we wanted, but it is important we just keep steering in the right direction. That's all we can really do.

"We finished very strong last season, so a lot of people want to talk about it in that way [the game being must-win] but it is still very early."

Emma Smith
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Everton have recalled defender Issy Hobson from her loan spell at Women's Super League 2 side Nottingham Forest because of injury issues at Goodison Park.

The 17-year-old did not play a league game for Forest, with her only appearance coming in the League Cup against Newcastle.

She joined the second-tier side on a season-long loan in the summer, but has been recalled with Everton missing five senior players through injury.

"She's happy to be back, she liked the set up at Forest but she is an Evertonian," Toffees manager Brian Sorensen told his media conference on Thursday.

"She wants to break through for us. It is a big jump to break into a team in the best league in the world, but defensively I can trust her. I'm sure she will get game time."

Hobson is available for selection when Everton visit Leicester in the WSL on Sunday.

Tom Mallows
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Manchester City forward Mary Fowler has signed a new contract until the summer of 2027.

The Australia international, whose previous deal expired next summer, has made 87 appearances for City since joining from Montpellier in 2022.

The 22-year-old is currently recovering from a ruptured anterior cruciate knee ligament that is expected to keep her out until the end of the year.

"Enjoying my football is a big part of me playing well and City has created an environment where I can flourish in that sense," said Fowler, who has 64 caps for Australia.

Manchester City Women director of football Therese Sjogran said: "Mary's a really important figure for us on and off the pitch.

"She's a tremendous talent, but the way she's improved each year since joining City speaks volumes of her attitude and hard work off the pitch."

On Thursday, Fowler became the first female professional footballer to walk the catwalk at Paris Fashion Week.

Image source, Getty Images

Everton have signed Manchester City goalkeeper Katie Startup on an emergency loan.

The 26-year-old goes straight into the squad for the Toffees' match on Sunday against Brighton and is named on the bench.

The former England-youth international, who was a graduate of Chelsea's academy, provides cover for the injured Courtney Brosnan.

Emily Salley
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Tottenham manager Martin Ho said Jess Naz has been "rocked" after receiving racial abuse on social media but that she is has "dealt with it really well".

The 24-year-old posted on Instagram that she had been the target of abuse following Tottenham's penalty shootout victory over Aston Villa in the Women's League Cup on Wednesday.

The England international wrote: "I was going to wait till after the game to speak because I'm done being quiet. I was subjected to racial abuse in my DMs."

Speaking on Friday, Ho said the abusive messages were "an attack on humanity, equality and respect".

"Jess has dealt with it really well, very professionally," he added.

"It's now with the club and they are liaising with those authorities on social media and those platforms to make sure that they can find ways that we can stamp that out, and we can hold people accountable and responsible for the words and the actions they use."

Asked if Naz would be supported if she decided not to play against Leicester on Sunday, Ho said: "Whatever Jess feels, we will support Jess with that. We'll see how she is tomorrow."