Erling Haaland may have hit unprecedented heights for Manchester City but Marc Skinner believes Manchester United have a similar talisman in Elisabeth Terland.

United boss Skinner likened Women's Super League star Terland to City's Premier League hero Haaland after the Norwegian scored twice in Sunday's 3-0 victory over Tottenham.

That marked her first two goals for United since joining from Brighton, having first blasted a volley home before looping another header over Becky Spencer.

Asked to describe Terland, Skinner said: "Intense in a good way. She is a person who is always focused, she doesn't dip off her focus whether it's pressing or whatever the task is, she's all in.

"I think she knows Haaland personally and I don't want to compare the two but the immense and intense action of both of them, that's how she performs."

Terland's heroics helped to ensure United's 100% record in the WSL this season stayed intact, with three wins and three clean sheets from three games.

The former Brighton forward, who found the net 13 times in the league last season, appeared all over the place against Spurs, attempting a game-high five shots with three of those on target.

Her two goals came from an expected goals tally of just 0.65, though, suggesting superior finishing from lower quality chances, something that will delight Skinner.

"I came to a club that wants to achieve big things. I know playing in a better team will make me better," Terland told Sky Sports.

"Part of my job is to score goals, it is great to get the first one for the club. A good win and I am proud of the team."

United finished fifth last campaign and lacked a regular scorer, with Nikita Parris finishing the term as the club's top scorer in the WSL with only eight goals.

Skinner knows the tide may now turn, however, with Terland firing up top.

"I just think she's an incredible talent," Skinner added.

"The beauty of her is I think she slows the moment and sees the opportunity under the most immense pressure."

Manchester United made light work of Tottenham as Marc Skinner's side continued their perfect start to the 2024-25 campaign with a 3-0 win.

Skinner's team moved level on points with Chelsea at the top of the Women's Super League thanks to goals from Elisabeth Terland and Maya Le Tissier on Sunday.

Terland, a summer signing from Brighton, opened her account for United with a quickfire double at the end of the first half at Leigh Sports Village.

The Norway international drilled in after Celin Bizet hit the crossbar, and the latter subsequently teed up Terland's second five minutes later.

United captain Le Tissier settled the contest from the penalty spot following Ashleigh Neville's handball just before the hour mark.

The Red Devils thrashed Spurs 4-0 in their last competitive meeting - the FA Cup final in May - and are now unbeaten in 11 WSL matches against them.

Indeed, this was their ninth win over Spurs in the competition, with United having only beaten Everton on as many occasions.

Data Debrief: United's pristine record

As well as picking up three wins from as many WSL matches, United are yet to concede a goal this season - the only team to have shut all of their opponents out so far.

Skinner continued his impressive record against Spurs, and is now unbeaten in his last eight meetings with them.

It has been a poor start for Spurs, meanwhile. After beating Crystal Palace 4-0 in their opener, they are now winless in three (D1 L2). Only in 2020-21 (0) have Tottenham had one or fewer wins across their opening four top-flight matches of a campaign.

Khadija Shaw opened her account for the Women's Super League season as Manchester City beat Brighton 1-0 to get their first win on the board.

Shaw was the runaway top scorer in the WSL last season, and she got up and running for the 2024-25 campaign with a neat close-range finish from Kerstin Casparij's low cross late in the first half of Sunday's clash at Joie Stadium.

Her goal was one of seven shots the Jamaican had throughout the contest, with Shaw having gone close on three occasions prior to breaking the deadlock.

Mary Fowler and Jessica Park both went close to extending City's lead after the break, while Lauren Hemp stung the palms of Sophie Baggaley.

The only disappointment for Gareth Taylor will have been that his side failed to make their dominance count for a second goal, with City mustering 3.03 expected goals (xG) to Brighton's 0.76.

"We got the job done," defender Alex Greenwood told BBC Sport.

"Sometimes in this league, you have to win ugly. I thought off the ball today we were better. Against Arsenal, we struggled with that at times, but we have worked really hard on that, and I thought we saw an improvement in that.

"This league is getting tougher and tougher every year, and we saw that with Brighton, it was a tough game. We take the win and the clean sheet all day."

Arsenal, who drew 2-2 with City last week, also got their first win on the board, with Frida Maanum's second-half strike proving decisive in a 1-0 defeat of Leicester City at the King Power Stadium.

Alessia Russo capitalised on an error from Catherine Bott, with the former Manchester United forward keeping her cool to set up Maanum for a simple finish, as Arsenal claimed a seventh straight WSL win over Leicester.

There was a thrilling finale in Aston Villa's clash with Tottenham, as three goals in 20 minutes saw the points shared in a 2-2 draw.

Spurs led through Eveliina Summanen's 23rd-minute penalty at Villa Park, but Adriana Leon and Rachel Daly flipped the match on its head.

However, Villa's hopes of claiming a memorable victory were dashed when Bethany England netted deep in second-half stoppage time.

Manchester United made it two wins from two as Grace Clinton's fourth-minute goal downed her former club Everton 1-0.

United goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce made good stops to deny Karoline Olesen and Inma Gabarro before the latter had to be taken off following a lengthy treatment for an injury.

West Ham, meanwhile, hit back late on to frustrate Liverpool in a 1-1 draw.

Liverpool's club-record signing Olivia Smith had put the Reds ahead early on, but a fine header from Riko Ueki ensured the spoils were shared.

Grace Clinton netted a debut goal as Manchester United got off to a winning start in the Women's Super League, cruising to a 3-0 victory over West Ham.

The new-look United side were in control throughout, and almost took an early lead as Leah Galton's cross was tipped onto the bar before Elisabeth Terland saw a header blocked on the line.

Geyse starred in the first half and soon got her reward after brushing aside Camile Saez at the byline to whip a shot in from a tight angle on the right of the box.

She almost got a second shortly after, meeting Maya Le Tissier's knockdown from a corner with an overhead kick that rattled the crossbar.

Galton doubled their advantage on the stroke of half-time, cutting inside from the left before rifling a powerful effort past Kinga Szemik from the edge of the box.

West Ham continued to struggle after the break, and Clinton wrapped up the points in the 53rd minute, glancing Lisa Naalsund's chipped cross in.

The visitors showed a late threat, but Phallon Tullis-Joyce defended her clean sheet, scrambling across her line to stop Anouk Denton's cross from sneaking in. 

Data Debrief: Making her mark

United ended last season with a 6-0 thumping by Chelsea at Old Trafford, but began the new campaign on a much brighter note.

Clinton became just the third player to score on her WSL debut for United, after Le Tissier in 2022 (v Reading) and Melvine Malard in 2023 (v Arsenal).

The Red Devils have also now won all five of their WSL home matches against West Ham without conceding, with each of the victories coming by 2+ goals. 

Natasha Dowie believes Chelsea's appointment of Sonia Bompastor highlights the new-found global appeal of the Women's Super League.

Bompastor enjoyed three successful years at Lyon, including winning a Champions League, before deciding to move on and replace Emma Hayes this summer.

Hayes led the Blues to seven WSL titles overall, winning each of the last five in a row, and Bompastor now has the challenge of becoming the first manager in WSL history to win the league on their first attempt.

Dowie, who is now a Liverpool ambassador after winning the league twice with the Reds, thinks it shows just how much the WSL has grown in recent times.

She told Stats Perform: "I think it's not just the best players in the world that want to come and play in England now, it's the best managers in the world. And that wasn't the case back in the day, and I think that's just brilliant."

Furthermore, Dowie also notes that her appointment could also prove crucial in terms of Chelsea finally claiming their elusive Champions League title, following several near misses and a defeat in the 2021 final.

"She's won everything at Lyon," Dowie added. "So now to move to a club like Chelsea, who have pretty much won the league the last five years, I think now the challenge for her and what she probably is excited about is how can we help Chelsea win the Champions League? That's all they haven't won."

The former striker is also excited at the prospect of Sam Kerr returning from injury, believing that she can once again play a key role for the Blues.

The Australian suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear during Chelsea's winter training camp in January, ruling her out for the second half of the season. 

Before her injury, Kerr was averaging 0.61 goals per 90 minutes, from 3.66 shots per 90, with a 16.67% conversion rate.

"[Kerr] is the number one striker, and she does it in the big pressure games, she always produces, and I think they missed her last year even though they won the league," Dowie said.

"I think that to have a Sam Kerr in your team - it's a nightmare for any team and I think all fans, the way that she's entertaining as well, the backflip, the kind of charisma that she has, she brings a lot to the game.

"So yeah, I think we're all excited to see her back performing."

Dowie predicts Manchester United to have an improved WSL campaign this year, following their FA Cup final success last season.

The Red Devils finished just two points behind Chelsea in 2022-23 but struggled to replicate that last year, and have since lost key players, including Mary Earps.

"I do think United will push on again this year," said Dowie.

"I think that to be fighting for the title with Chelsea the year before and then to obviously finish fifth last year was really disappointing.

"I think there'll be a team this year that will be up there again competing for trophies, so you could say that United could be a surprise package."

Phallon Tullis-Joyce is excited by the job Emma Hayes has already done with the United States and predicts she will have even more success in the role.

Hayes left Chelsea after 12 years in charge in May, going out on a high after leading the Blues to a fifth consecutive Women's Super League triumph on the final day of last season.

It was her seventh title overall with Chelsea, also winning five FA Cups and two League Cups, as well as leading the team to the Champions League final in 2020-21.

Hayes began her tenure as the USA boss in May and helped the team to a record-extending fifth Olympic gold in Paris, as an undefeated tournament ended with a 1-0 win over Brazil in August.

Having made such a bright start to life with the USWNT, Tullis-Joyce, who has never played for her national team, is expecting great things from Hayes.

Speaking at the Barclays WSL's 2024-25 season launch media day, the goalkeeper told Stats Perform: "I think that's incredible for US soccer to have such a notable coach.

"Everyone has seen how great she's done in this league alone, and I'm excited to see what she does with the US Women's National Team.

"She's already done an amazing job, so I can imagine she's going to do so many more great things for time to come, especially for the younger generations."

One of the players who did not feature at the Olympics for the USWNT was Alex Morgan, who recently announced her retirement from football.

Morgan, regarded as a USA legend, is one of the most decorated players in the history of the team, winning back-to-back World Cups in 2015 and 2019 and clinching Olympic gold in 2012.

She is ninth on the all-time appearance charts having earned 224 caps, and since her international debut in March 2010, no player has been involved in more goals for the USA than her (175, 123 goals, 52 assists).

Tullis-Joyce was full of praise for the former striker and explained how she drove her to improve after coming up against her.

"Just massive respect for Alex Morgan, she's definitely a player that I've looked up to as an American," Tullis-Joyce said.

"She was one of the ones that we saw on the national team constantly just shredding goalkeepers left and right.

"Honestly, I'm learning from her how to protect my goal a little bit better. I had the fortunate opportunity to play against her several times.

"Honestly, she just seems like such a great person. And I wish her all the best in her retirement, especially after what she's done for women's football."

Phallon Tullis-Joyce believes learning from Mary Earps during her time at Manchester United has her well-placed to step up as the Red Devils' new number one.

Earps, who spent five seasons with United, joined Paris Saint-Germain in July upon the expiry of her contract at the Women's Super League side. 

During her time with the Red Devils, she made 102 appearances in all competitions, keeping 46 clean sheets in the WSL in that time. 

The 31-year-old scooped the Golden Glove in the 2022-23 campaign, while also helping United lift the Women's FA Cup in her final season with the club.

Tullis-Joyce spent just one year alongside Earps after arriving from the Seattle Reign last year, with all four of her appearances coming in the League Cup. 

But speaking at the Barclays WSL's 2024-25 season launch media day, the American told Stats Perform her time with Earps has her well-prepared for this season.

"I was fortunate enough to train with Mary for an entire season, learn from her, learn from the staff as well," Tullis-Joyce said.

"Four of us together just being able to hold a high standard has already helped me in that preparation for this season."

Head coach Marc Skinner is backing Tullis-Joyce to fill the seismic gap left by Earps, a statement that filled the American with confidence. 

"Yeah, definitely very, very grateful to our staff," Tullis-Joyce started.

"I mean, right from the start, when I got there, they were very clear about their intentions and where I was at and where they wanted to see me progress to.

"I'm just super happy to be with the squad."

United are looking to improve on an underwhelming campaign last year, finishing fifth and 15 points adrift of the Champions League qualification places. 

Only Manchester City (15), Chelsea (18), Arsenal (20) and Liverpool (28) conceded less than United's 32 goals in the league, but their inconsistent results proved costly. 

Tullis-Joyce acknowledged their showing last term fell below the mark, but highlighted the Red Devils' FA Cup success as a solid foundation to build on this season.

"We're taking this step by step," Tullis-Joyce said.

"These players have been grinding it out during this pre-season.

"We're pushing our limits, and we obviously have our sights set on the absolute best that we can perform as a squad and that's where we're at for the season."

Emma Hayes' Chelsea departure could offer a window of opportunity for their Women's Super League rivals in 2024-25, says Manchester United coach Marc Skinner.

Hayes left Chelsea to take up her new role in charge of the United States national team in May, then led them to a record-extending fifth Olympic gold medal at Paris 2024.

Chelsea won seven WSL titles, five FA Cups and two League Cups in 12 years under Hayes, also winning the most games (145), scoring the most goals (525) and earning the most points (462) in the WSL throughout her reign.

Sonia Bompastor, who led Lyon to the Champions League crown in 2021-22 after twice winning the competition as a player, has taken the reins ahead of the 2024-25 campaign, which begins on Friday, September 20, with the Blues taking on Aston Villa.

Despite her impressive CV, many believe Chelsea could endure teething problems and see their five-year stranglehold on the WSL crown threatened this term.

Speaking at the Barclays WSL's 2024-25 season launch media day, United boss Skinner outlined his hope that the Blues could suffer from a drop-off.

"It'll be a welcome change because she seemed to win a lot of games. Chelsea will be different, but they've also got a proven winner in Sonia," Skinner said.

"So it'll be a tough one, but the reality is as a coach, you only play them twice a season, so you've got to prepare for those games differently. 

"Emma's gone on to already achieve good things with the American team in the Olympics, and we know she's left her mark on this league. But now it's time for other teams to do the same, so hopefully we can be that team."

Skinner's United side will have a new face between the sticks next season after England stalwart Mary Earps left to join Paris Saint-Germain, following a long-running contract dispute with the Red Devils.

American Phallon Tullis-Joyce is expected to step up after serving as Earps' deputy last season, and Skinner believes she could even have a higher ceiling than her predecessor.

"I'll stress that Mary is a fantastic goalkeeper and a really big character. The reality was when we signed Phallon, we knew that Fallon could be Manchester United's number one," he said.

"Not only does she possess the skillset to be that player, but she hasn't even reached her full potential yet. 

"So as much as we'll miss Mary, we wish her all the very best, but we move forward. Football moves too quickly. 

"And for us, I have absolute confidence that you will see a fantastic goalkeeper in Phallon, who has all the potential to be a top, top goalkeeper, hopefully at the same level as Mary and beyond because she has an incredible skillset."

England goalkeeper Mary Earps has joined Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer after leaving Manchester United.

Earps' United future had been in doubt for some time as she ran down the final 12 months of her contract last season, having previously been linked with Arsenal and PSG.

On Saturday, the Euro 2022 winner confirmed she was leaving United after five years with the club, having made 125 appearances for them across all competitions.

On Monday, her anticipated move to France was finalised as she penned a two-year deal with Les Parisiennes, who finished as Premiere Ligue runners-up to Lyon last term.

The Lionesses shot-stopper said: "Together, we’re going to give our all to help the club shine and make our fans proud. 

"I'm determined to contribute to our future success so that Paris Saint-Germain continues to rank among Europe's top clubs."

Reports have suggested United offered Earps a more lucrative wage than PSG, but her determination to compete for silverware was the primary motivation behind her move.

United finished fifth in the Women's Super League last season, though they did thrash Tottenham 4-0 in the Women's FA Cup final to lift their first major trophy.

Mary Earps has left Manchester United ahead of her anticipated switch to Paris Saint-Germain.

Reports emerged earlier this week that the England goalkeeper, who won FIFA Best awards in 2022 and 2023, would be joining PSG upon the expiration of her contract with United.

Earps joined United in 2019 and has played a key role in their rise up to the upper echelons of the women's game, and helped the club win their first piece of silverware when they thrashed Tottenham in the women's FA Cup final in May.

However, the 31-year-old has turned down a contract offer from United and is now destined to head to France.

Official confirmation of Earps' departure came on Saturday.

She marks the third big name to leave United this off-season, following captain Katie Zelem and forward Lucia Garcia.

Earps made 125 appearances for United in all competitions.

She played in all 22 of United's WSL matches last season, making 60 saves and recording a 65.2% save percentage.

Excluding own goals, Earps conceded 30 times in the competition in 2023-24, from an expected goals on target (xGoT) figure of 30.6.

Manchester United have confirmed the departure of captain Katie Zelem.

England international Zelem has spent six years with United, helping them gain promotion to the WSL in her first season.

Zelem has scored 32 goals in 161 appearances for the club, and led them to a maiden Women's FA Cup triumph in 2023-24.

However, she is now set for pastures new, with the 28-year-old joining forward Lucia Garcia in departing upon the expiration of her contract.

"Everyone at Manchester United would like to place on record their thanks to Katie for her excellent service and wish her the best of luck in the next phase of her career," a club statement read.

Zelem and Garcia do not appear to be the only big names who will be leaving United after the end of their current deals, with England goalkeeper Mary Earps reportedly set to join Paris Saint-Germain.

Emma Hayes says this Women’s Super League title is the "toughest but sweetest" after being pushed all the way by Manchester City.

Hayes announced earlier this season that this would be her last in charge of the Blues and had written off their chances of lifting the trophy after a 4-3 defeat to Liverpool at the start of May.

However, an 8-0 victory over Bristol City followed by a 1-0 win from their game in hand over Tottenham put their fate back in their own hands going into the final day.

In the end, Chelsea won the WSL on goal difference, with another heavy 6-0 win adding to their advantage over City to help them to a fifth consecutive title.

Hayes took time after the match to reflect not only on the game but also on her 12-year stay at Chelsea.

"What a wonderful performance from the team today," she told Sky Sports. "I picked a team of leaders from the beginning, and I felt it was absolutely essential we had the emotional maturity and regulation for a stadium as fitting as this.

"We've lost a lot of players today so to have some of them back today, it was just an amazing performance.

"I can't say it's my most enjoyable [title] but it's definitely been the toughest, without doubt, and for that reason, probably the sweetest. I'm just so relieved it's over.

"I just haven't got any more to give, I know that. The hardest thing to do is five in a row, because people take their eye off the ball. My legacy is winning while building a team for the future.

"Everyone said girls can't play, nor can they fill stadiums, nor can they get paid, nor can they create history.

"Not only are we not going away, but we are going to fill them every week. Women's football now is a serious business and that for me, is what it's about."

Captain Millie Bright missed six months of the season due to a knee injury, but returned in April to help Chelsea during an important run-in.

"It was pretty special but when half the country writes you off... we've got the monster mentality, we've shown it season after season," she said after the game.

"We were given a second chance. They don't often, but you have to take them, and we did. We beat Bristol City, beat Tottenham, and we've come here and put on a five-star performance to take this title.

"It's extra special to get it for Emma [Hayes] and the players who are leaving us.

"That's our standards, we shouldn't be underestimated to make this sort of comeback because we're defending champions.

"It's been an emotional season for Emma especially. We picked her up [after the loss at Liverpool] like she does for us every day."

Mayra Ramirez turned in a stellar performance to propel Chelsea to the WSL title in Emma Hayes' final match in charge as the Blues thrashed Manchester United 6-0.

Earlier in May, Hayes – who is ending a 12-year stint in charge of the Blues to become the United States coach – had all but given up on claiming a fifth straight WSL crown.

Yet Chelsea's 8-0 victory over Bristol City two weeks ago, combined with Manchester City's defeat to Arsenal, opened the door, and after beating Tottenham in midweek, the Blues knew a win, while maintaining their positive goal difference, would be enough.

And they made sure there was no room for error with an incredible first-half display inspired by Ramirez, who scored twice and set up goals for Johanna Rytting Kaneryd and Sjoeke Nusken at Old Trafford.

Melanie Leupolz got in on the act early in the second half as Chelsea's celebrations began in earnest, with Fran Kirby netting late on to complete the rout on her farewell appearance.

Ultimately, City – likely deflated by the news coming from Old Trafford – held up their end of the bargain, but shorn of top goalscorer Khadija Shaw, Gareth Taylor's team could only beat Aston Villa 2-1.

City were constantly chasing their title rivals, with Ramirez and Rytting Kaneryd putting Chelsea 2-0 up at United inside eight minutes.

Mary Fowler nudged City ahead at Villa Park, though when Taylor's team went in at the interval, they will have seen additional goals from record signing Ramirez and Nusken had all but sewn up the title for Chelsea already.

Leupolz has scored her first WSL goal in over two years to add further gloss for Chelsea when they came back out from the restart in Manchester, and City were then hit by a further blow when Rachel Daly equalised for Villa.

Lauren Hemp, who had assisted Fowler's opener, restored City's lead, though it was never going to be enough, with Kirby's farewell goal ensuring Chelsea finished with a goal difference of 53 compared to their rivals' 46.

Chelsea are now unbeaten across their last nine WSL games that have come on the final day of the season, while the Blues are now nine WSL matches without loss against United, having won eight of those fixtures.

Marc Skinner has signed a one-year contract extension as Manchester United Women head coach with the option of a further 12 months.

The 41-year-old guided United to their first major silverware last weekend with victory over Tottenham in the Women's FA Cup final.

United are fifth in the Women's Super League with one game to go - a massive drop on last term's runners-up finish - but Skinner will stay on.

"It's an honour to extend my stay at Manchester United," Skinner, who was appointed in 2021, told United's official website after the news was confirmed on Friday. 

"I've always felt at home here, with our excellent players, staff, and fans.

"Being able to secure the team's first major trophy at Wembley was a real career highlight for me and another sign of our continued growth, on and off the field."

United conclude their campaign on Saturday against Chelsea, who lead Manchester City on goal difference entering the final day.

The WSL title race could hardly be any closer heading into the final game of the season. Chelsea and Manchester City are locked together on 52 points apiece, with goal difference the only factor nudging the Blues ahead.

It is finely poised, and both sets of fans are in for a roller-coaster ride on Saturday.

Chelsea put themselves in pole position on Wednesday by winning their final game in hand, beating Tottenham 1-0. The Blues are now two goals ahead on goal difference ahead of facing Manchester United on Saturday. City, meanwhile, take on Aston Villa.

There could be the scenario that the teams finish level on both goal difference and goals scored. The determining metric would then be the number of league wins, followed by head-to-head record against their title rivals. In that scenario, Man City would be crowned Champions, having won away and drawn at home.

The Opta Supercomputer, though, has Chelsea in the driving seat on the final day with a 56.3 per cent chance of retaining their title.

City manager Garth Taylor, however, backed his team to prove the computer wrong.

"Well, I think we have a great chance. We're capable of going and scoring four," he said.

"We know we're capable. Does it mean obviously that you're able to go and do it at the weekend? Of course, because there are many factors that need to go into that. But yeah, I'll leave the data to the other guys.

"I think what we have to do is really concentrate on ourselves and make sure we don't take our eye off the ball. And like I say, start as impressively and as fast as we possibly can and see where that takes us. But you've seen with this team, they can score goals. 

"So it's just about constantly realigning them on the focus and what we need to do. Like I say, the more we've done that this season, the better we've been."

How many days have each of these teams led the way this term?

Chelsea lead the standings with an impressive 152. City have only managed 64 days at the top, and have spent much of their time chasing down the Blues.

Hayes' last hurrah

Emma Hayes will bid farewell to Chelsea and the WSL, and she is determined to go out in glorious fashion.

The last few weeks have been challenging for Hayes, with Chelsea losing to Arsenal in the League Cup final, going down to Barcelona in a controversial Champions League semi-final and then suffering a heavy defeat to Liverpool days later. Hayes had declared the title race "over" at that stage.

However, her players had other plans, and put themselves back in contention with an emphatic 8-0 win over relegated Bristol City to turn the goal difference in their favour, and followed that up by beating Spurs. City also handed them hope by losing 2-1 to Arsenal.

This last game will be an iconic goodbye, as the Blues travel to Old Trafford and face last season's challengers for the title, Man United. The fact that this match is at the men's stadium really does emphasise the huge growth the women's game has experienced in the 12 years Hayes has been in charge of Chelsea.

The United Way: Will FA Cup winners decide the title?

When Hayes started managing the Blues, United did not even have a professional women's side. United were promoted to the WSL after just one season following their establishment in 2018, and have not looked back.

Last season, it was the red side of Manchester running Hayes and her Chelsea side to the wire for the title race. This season, United created history by winning their first ever major trophy by beating Spurs 4-0 at Wembley.

United now have the fate of the title partly in their hands, though it would mean possibly gifting the crown to their rivals City.

United have won three of their four WSL games on the final day of the season, including the curtailed 2019-20 season, though that sole loss came in a 4-2 defeat to Chelsea in May 2022.

The Blues will also feel confident having got the better of Man Utd of late, unbeaten in their last eight WSL matches (W7 D1 L0).

Chelsea have scored the most goals in the WSL this season (65), six more than Man City (59), at an average of 3.0 per match, while also having the best xG (55.9) in the division.

United are looking for their first league win against Chelsea since November 2019. They have been outscored 21-7 during this streak.

Chelsea have lost just one of their last 11 away league matches played on a Saturday (W9 D1 L1), winning all of their last four on the road on this day while keeping a clean sheet in all of those victories and scoring 20 goals in the process.

United trio Mary Earps, Maya Le Tissier and Katie Zelem have played every minute of their WSL campaign this season, with City in 2019-20 the last team to have three players play 100 per cent of their total minutes in a WSL campaign (Caroline Weir, Gemma Bonner and Steph Houghton).

Zelem has created 55 chances for her team-mates, the most of any player in the competition, as well as playing 198 passes into the box, also a league-high.

Fran Kirby will pull on a Cheslea shirt for one final time. She has the most direct goal contributions 89 under Hayes in the WSL.

With 33, Kirby has also provided the most WSL assists in Hayes' tenure. She has also created the second-most chances (227), behind Ji So-Yun (228). One final crown would mark the end of an iconic stint at her time with Chelsea.

If Chelsea can get in front, they will be confident of the victory, the team have dropped a league-low three points from winning positions this season. 

City always the bridesmaid, never the bride?

City are hoping to end an eight-year wait to lift their second WSL title. In that time City have been runners up on five separate occasions.

Last time out, City suffered a 2-1 defeat against Arsenal at Joie Stadium, handing the momentum back to Chelsea in what has been an enthralling title race. This defeat snapped a 14-match winning streak and was a blow in what has been a record-breaking season.

City are unbeaten on the final day of the season across each of the last four WSL campaigns (W3 D1 – including curtailed 2019-20 season), winning each of the last three in succession.

Meanwhile, no team has had as many shots on target as City (171), who are one ahead of Chelsea's tally of 170.

Lauren Hemp has scored five goals in six prior WSL meetings with Aston Villa, including netting a brace in the reverse fixture earlier this season. She has also recorded seven assists so far in the league this season, the most of any player in the competition.

City will be without leading scorer Khadija Shaw, but they have been imperious at the back.

They have the best defence in the league in terms of goals against, having conceded only 14 times in 21 matches. However, their xGA of 18.8 is actually second-best, ranking behind Arsenal (17.7)

The star of the City defence has been shot-stopper extraordinaire Khiara Keating, in her first full season as City number one. Even ahead of the final game, the 19-year-old has been named the Golden Glove winner with nine clean sheets, beating England's number one Earps (seven).

Keating is the youngest goalkeeper ever to bag the award. Villa will present a stern test, having opened the scoring in each of their last three WSL home games, but they have failed to win any of them (D2 L1); in fact, the Villans have failed to win six of the seven home league games theyve taken a 1-0 lead in this season (W1 D3 L3).

However it plays out, one thing is for sure - Saturday will be filled with drama, tension and goals.

As these two heavyweights go toe to toe, history will be made. Either a fifth consecutive crown for Hayes as she bows out, or for the first time in many years, Chelsea could end a campaign with no silverware.