Aston Villa's Natalia Arroyo becomes the WSL's first managerial casualty of the season after a disappointing start for the Villian's which see them sat in 13th place with just 2 points.

Whilst many fans have been focusing on the issues at clubs like Manchester United & Arsenal it has been easy to pass over other clubs who might not be performing as well as expected and it is Villa that have become the first club to look for a change in management, much to some fans surprise. 

Arroyo was appointed back in January 2025 and led the club to a 9th place finish last season, a few positions down from their 6th place finish in the 24/25 season (although the points margin was just a 5 point difference). This season though just doesn't seem to have gone to plan for the side with them picking up just 2 points from their first 4 games. 

The summer saw plenty of movement for Villa with 5 departures due to contracts ending and the loss of Kirsty Hanson to Tottenham Hotspur, they did however, bring in 8 new players from various teams across Europe who just haven't hit the ground running yet. Add into the mix club captain Rachel Daly being unavailable for the foreseeable due to her recent pregnancy announcement and a whole host of players carrying injuries who would usual be in the match day squad Arroyo's choices have been very limited and the squad she has had to work with may not be as strong as she had expected come the end of the transfer window.

Ultimately though the decision has been made very early on in the season that a change in the dugout is needed and this way at least it gives a new manager a chance to see what they have before the January transfer window when changes may be required player wise. There is plenty of opportunity for someone to come in make the team their own and hopefully change the fate for Villa this season. 

The club are on the hunt for a replacement but in the mean time Brian Sorensen (women's technical advisor) will be taking charge of the team. 

Will we see things change for the team or is the settling in period for a new manager going to take a while? Either way the club will just be hoping that they can soon start picking up points and get away from the drop zone.

Is Arroyo's departure going to be the only managerial departure before Christmas? With plenty of teams not performing as you may expect anything could happen this season.

The latest Lionesses squad is in and it is looking a little different than usual. Today's announcement sees Sarina Wiegman name her squad for the upcoming World Cup qualifying matches next month vs Greece. The 23 player squad will be hoping to win the two legged tie to progress to round 2 of the play-offs where they will compete for a spot at next years World Cup in Brazil. 

Noticeably missing from the squad is Ella Toone, Chloe Kelly & Aggie Beever-Jones. In place though we see Lexi Potter gaining her first call up for the senior team who has impressed so far this season for Chelsea. 18 year old Erica Meg Parkinson of the North Carolina Courage in the NWSL has also earnt a call up after impressing since joining the courage in the Summer. It is nice to see new names coming into a squad that until recently we have seen the same names called up over and over again. 

Looking at the defence it is nice to see a strong backline announced however, with Charles only playing her first game of the season last weekend are we relying too much on her too soon? I guess only time will tell. The full back positions are where the Lionesses often get caught out but could we see Greenwood over on the left and maybe Le Tissier in the middle getting the game time she deserves for her country? Uncapped Liverpool defender Fisk will also be wanting to make a name for herself so will we see her pick up her first cap for the senior team in this round of fixtures? Defence is what has let the Lionesses down the past few games and has changed a fair bit since their latest Euro win due to injuries and retirements so hopefully these next two games will show that the defensive line is looking stronger and that the players picked can communicate better than they have been doing especially looking back at their last game vs Spain when nothing seemed to be going right for them. 

In terms of the midfield for this round of fixtures the midfield options are a bit short however, there is plenty of quality on there. Blinkilde Brown has had a great start to the season at City so can she continue this in the qualifiers? Hopefully she gets the chance to prove herself with a good amount of game time. Potter is another one who we hope to see get some game time as she is really becoming a standout at Chelsea and has the potential to really make an impact on the Lionesses team. 

Looking at the attacking options this camp you would like to think that plenty of goals are going to be scored this camp however, only time will tell. Hemp has had an absolutely fantastic start to this season and hopefully she brings that across to the Lionesses as not only is she capable of getting the goals she can also provide plenty of assists. Hopefully we get to see Russo in her more natural role for the Lionesses too in the hopes of seeing her picking up her confidence after a bit of a rough start for Arsenal this season. Maybe a goal will help kickstart her season into another level and provide that boost that she can carry into performances for both club & country going forward. Hopefully we get to see Godfrey on the pitch in these fixtures too as we have all seen what she is capable of at London City Lionesses and she can really help push for goals for the Lionesses vs Greece and like Hemp she is more than capable of providing the assists too.

So here is how the squad for these games is currently looking...

Goalkeepers

Hannah Hampton - Chelsea

Khiara Keating - Liverpool

Anna Moorhouse - Manchester City (on loan from Orlando City) 

Defenders

Lucy Bronze - Chelsea

Jess Carter - Gotham FC

Niamh Charles - Manchester City 

Grace Fisk - Liverpool 

Alex Greenwood - Manchester City 

Maya Le Tissier - Manchester United

Esme Morgan - Washington Spirit

Leah Williamson - Arsenal 

Midfielders 

Laura Blinkilde Brown - Manchester City

Lucia Kendall - Aston Villa

Erica Meg Parkinson - North Carolina Courage

Lexi Potter - Chelsea

Georgia - Stanway - Arsenal

Keira Walsh - Chelsea

Forwards 

Freya Godfrey - London City Lionesses 

Lauren Hemp - Manchester City 

Lauren James - Chelsea

Beth Mead - Manchester City

Jess Park - Manchester United

Alessia Russo - Arsenal

It is going to be interesting to see if there are any changes due to injury in the run up to camp starting and who would be brought in as replacement if needed. This squad certainly has the potential to push the Lionesses to the next round of qualifying though so let's see how it plays out. The Lionesses take on Greece in Heraklion on Friday the 9th of October before playing the second leg at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday the 13th of October. 

Who will be one step closer to Brazil 2027? 

 

The WSL is finally back and this season it is bigger and better due to the leagues expansion. This season sees 14 teams in the league and plenty of exciting players joining thanks to a pretty impressive transfer window. It feels like forever ago that we saw Manchester City lift their first title in 10 years, can we see them lift another trophy this season? Only time will tell. Here is a look at this weekends fixtures...

London City Lionesses vs Manchester United

The season is kicking off with one of the teams all eyes are on this season... London City Lionesses. London City have invested heavily this season with them most noticeably bringing in Alexia Putellas from Barcelona, one of the biggest names in the game currently, are we going to see her help her team to their first 3 points of the campaign tonight and show what they are capable of or are we going to see a team now full of big names that need to learn to play together to maximise their full potential? As for their opponents Manchester United we have seen a lot of change for them this off season too with a managerial departure, plenty of players departing and maybe not as many incomings as we expected. This game is going to be a great one for neutral fans so let's see how it plays out.

Chelsea vs Aston Villa

Last season didn't go to plan for either of these teams so they will be coming out with a point to prove this season I am sure. Chelsea have made some strong signings this season and could we see Malard on the scoresheet in her first league game for the club? Chelsea finished 3rd last season and will be wanting to hit the ground running to improve on the ASAP as we all know how tight it can be at the top of the table each season. As for Aston Villa they ended up in the 9th position last season and will be really wanting to prove they can do better but are up against a big test vs Chelsea for their first game. We have seen Villa cause upsets before can they do it again on the opening weekend?

Brighton vs Arsenal

Brighton are one of those teams that just seem to be hovering midtable year after year but could we see this change? Towards the end of last season we saw Brighton really hit a good run of form and saw them cause plenty of obstacles in the title race and they open their campaign against Arsenal, a team they had mixed results against last season. With both these teams bringing in plenty of players but losing a few too we are going to be in for an interesting game which could go either way, again a game perfect for neutral but one that may have fans of either of these teams on the edge of their seats. The question is how will Brighton recently losing their manager effect them for their opening game?

Tottenham vs West Ham

West Ham struggled last season and we didn't see anywhere near the best from them however, they have really invested this off season and it is possible we are going to see them improve on their 10th place finish last season if the team settles down quickly. This should be a good test for both these teams and it should show others what they are going to be capable of. Tottenham have had a fair few ins and outs so again it is going to be interesting to see how those newcomers impact the overall performance.

Crystal Palace vs Everton

Everton has finished 8th in the past 3 seasons so they will be wanting to be hitting the ground running this season to try finish above previous seasons. We have seen that they can often take a while to start picking up the points however, with the summer signings could we see them start the campaign on the right note? Their opponents are Crystal Palace newly promoted back to the WSL. Palace didn't have a good time in their last WSL appearance however, this summer they have added to their ranks, most notably getting Bethany England into the squad. Could we see England get her new team those vital points on opening weekend?

Charlton vs Liverpool 

Newcomers Charlton are hosting Liverpool this weekend, can they pick up their first 3 points of WSL life or will Liverpool spoil the party? Both these teams have lost a fair few players for this season but have also added a few to their ranks but are any of the newcomers going to provide an instant impact? Only time will tell but it is safe to say Charlton will be out there wanting to prove their place in the WSL after playoff victory last season. There may not be a lot of outsiders backing Charlton to do well this season so will they be proving people wrong in week one or will Liverpool show them what top flight football is all about?

Manchester City vs Birmingham

Birmingham possibly have the biggest game of all the newcomers as they head to the Joie Stadium to face the title holders but can they provide the biggest upset of the weekend? Birmingham will be wanting to make their mark on the league early on whilst Manchester City will be wanting to prove they are going to do everything possible to retain their title. Manchester City have been hit by plenty of injuries for the start of the season however, they have shown time after time their squad depth holds plenty of talent for when those injuries hit so will some big names missing be as troublesome for the team as people are making out? This game has the potential to be a high scorer or an upset so which way will it end up going?

Are we going to see any upsets in week one? I guess only time will tell but with it being the opening weekend and teams still getting used to each other anything could happen! Here at Edge of the Area we are so glad the league is back and we are looking forward to covering it throughout the course of the season. Get used to previews, wrap ups and so much more WSL content.