LIVERPOOL WOMEN VS. CHELSEA WOMEN

| Sunday, September 18th |
(!!!!) Women’s Super League (!!!!) | Prenton Park
5PM GMT/12PM EST

Not to make this all about me, but if any other royal family member dies between now and kickoff, I’m going to be so angry.

What should have been a soft re-entry into the world of top flight football for Liverpool with a game against 8th placed Reading last week has become an opening match against three-time league champions and current FA Cup winners Chelsea.

At least it’s at Prenton Park, I guess? As manager Matt Beard pointed out, they’ll have to play them sometime, so why not first, when excitement amongst the fans will be the highest? And with the match against their male counterparts postponed this weekend, all eyes will be on them.

Charlotte Wardlaw, on loan to Liverpool from the Blues, will be unavailable for this match. However, aside from that, Beard should have a fit and eager side ready to finally kickoff.

Most exciting is the return of Shanice van de Sanden to the side, a move which sets to bolster Liverpool’s already vicious attack. With van de Sanden feeding balls to the likes of Leanne Kiernan and Katie Stengel up front, it might be just the thing to push them from Championship quality to top flight material.

Their mettle will be tested on Sunday against an already-strong Chelsea side who have made their own additions over the summer. The biggest threat comes from Australian captain, current FAWSL Golden Boot winner, and Ballon d’Or second runner-up, Sam Kerr. At least one of Liverpool’s presumptive starting defenders, Niamh Fahey, Gilly Flaherty, or Leighanne Robe, will need to be dedicated to Kerr and nulling the danger she presents.

Television: Sky Sports Premier League (UK); Paramount+ (USA); Optus Sport (Australia); Sportsnet Now (Canada); SuperSport GOtv Select 2 (Nigeria); SuperSport Variety 3 (South Africa); other listings at LiveSoccerTV

Streaming: Online Radio: LFCTV GO

LIVERPOOL

Teamsheets will be released one hour prior to the kickoff

CHELSEA

Teamsheets will be released one hour prior to the kickoff

What the Managers Had to Say

Matt Beard: “Yeah, look, you’ve got to play them at some time. Listen, they are a fantastic team. They have won the league three years on the spin, so that tells you all you need to know.”

Emma Hayes: “We need to kick off to see how much progress we have made in those summer weeks, when we’ve been working on our way of playing and the clarity around everybody’s roles, and the scenarios you have to face game to game.”

Kickoff is set for 5PM GMT/12PM EST tomorrow. Stick with The Liverpool Offside team to keep yourself up to date with team news and match buildup, live updates, and post-match reaction. If you want to join the discussion, sign up for an SB Nation account and have your say on the action as it happens.