Sam Tierney, Sydney and Switzerland as Euro 2025 hosts - your women's football roundup
Another week has gone by and there has once again been plenty of women’s football action to enjoy, with the second legs of the Champions League quarter-finals taking place, the new NWSL campaign continuing to spew out talking points and the WSL remaining as tight as ever at the top and bottom of the league.
As ever, this newsletter will bring you the usual mix of talking points and news items that might have escaped your attention, as well as three other articles worth dipping into and a podcast episode to enjoy should you find a moment to do so, ensuring that you are as informed as possible about the latest goings-on around the globe.
3 key talking points….
Sam Tierney continues to show her importance in Leicester’s survival bid
Leicester City’s WSL campaign has been a tale of two halves in many ways, with them failing to pick up any points before the Christmas break and looking destined for the drop, before coming out and playing like a completely different side once the action had got back underway.
However, despite the topsy-turvy nature of their season, one player who never seems to have a bad game for them is midfielder Sam Tierney. At the weekend, she was undoubtedly the best player on the pitch against Reading and a key reason for her side claiming a huge three points that saw them climb out of the relegation zone, with her continually breaking up Reading’s play and sending balls forward to get her own team on the front foot.
As far as the relegation battle is concerned, this win doesn’t really mean too much yet, with now-bottom side Brighton having two games in hand on the East Midlands club and so their fate is still very much in their hands.
However, should this be the win that keeps Leicester up, then Tierney deserves a lot of credit for her contribution to it, and any plaudits that she is given from inside the club and from fans and the media will be richly deserved.
Sydney wrap up a third straight A-League Premiers title
Whilst a lot of women’s football fans have been firmly focused on the tight battles taking place in the majority of Europe’s major leagues, it is easy to forget that other seasons are also taking place in other areas of the world too. In Australia, the A-League is rapidly approaching its own conclusion, with the regular campaign reaching its endpoint last Sunday after 18 weeks of exciting action and every side aiming to end the season on a positive note.
At the top of the table, the race to finish at the summit has gradually been whittled down to a two-way fight between defending Premiers Sydney and new side Western United, and, as it turned out, a 4-0 home win against Newcastle Jets ensured that the former secured yet another regular season title.
A lot of praise has rightly gone to head coach Ante Juric, who has led the side with distinction for the last six years, and many inside and outside the club feel that his hard work in rebuilding the club and leading them to where they are today is why they are now one of the country’s strongest sides.
“For [captain Natalie] Tobin, the culture that has been built under Juric's tenure has been the driving force behind their record-breaking past three seasons. Even as players have come and gone, the foundation of togetherness, hard work, discipline, and sacrifice that Sydney has remained solid year after year.”
Samantha Lewis, writing in the aftermath of Sydney’s title win.
On the field, clever tactics have played a major part in their success, and over on Total Football Analysis, I broke down those tactics as well as highlighting some of the areas where they needed to improve ahead of the upcoming Finals stage, which is where the last two seasons have ended in disappointment for Ante Juric’s side.
Sydney’s title success - and where they can improve ahead of the Finals.
If they are to avoid a third consecutive campaign of failing to secure the Champions title to add to their Premiers achievement, then those are the areas that they will now need to look at as they look ahead to those vital games.
However, with the international break taking place between now and then, they can afford to smile a little bit and celebrate, and they should because winning the Premiers title is no mean feat.
Switzerland to host Euro 2025
When it was announced earlier this week that Switzerland had been chosen to host Euro 2025, beating off competition from Poland, France and a joint bid from Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland (with support from Iceland and the Faroe Islands), the reaction among women’s football fans was generally quite positive.
Many felt that it was a sensible choice to make for several reasons.
Firstly, the country’s position in the middle of the continent means that, for broadcasting purposes, games will be at sociable times and many around Europe will be able to tune in to watch their sides or just enjoy the action if their nations fail to qualify.
Secondly, travel to Switzerland is easy, with regular flights leaving most major airports, and it can be expected that extra journeys will be laid on in order to allow those who want to attend the games and soak in the Swiss culture to do so whilst the tournament is on.
Thirdly, there is a general feeling that hosting the tournament will work wonders for women’s football in the country. Swiss women’s football, whilst not hidden away, is not one of the European leagues that often gets talked about, due to it being smaller in size and having sides who struggle to compete with other teams on the continental stage.
However, they are capable of having the odd positive result here and there, with Geneva-based Servette Chenois’s achievement of reaching the Champions League group stages in 2021/2022 definitely something to write home about.
With the added attention and financial bonuses that will come from hosting the tournament, there will be a feeling among fans of the league that it can become stronger and more competitive, as well as receiving added fan interest and coverage around the world, and the fact that Swiss Football Association president Dominique Blanc talked about how “this major step will shape the development of women’s football at all levels” shows that the initial signs are good in that respect.
Read all about it….
Morocco at the World Cup - as with the men’s World Cup last year, Morocco will be going into the global event in the summer as an underdog and not a side that many are fancying to do anything special - and yet they are hoping to emulate their male counterparts by doing something just as big, as this article by Victoire Eyoum explains on the BBC Sport website.
Finalissima build-up - this evening sees the first time that the Finalissima (a game between the European and South American champions) takes place, with England hosting Brazil at Wembley in a very highly-anticipated clash. For everything that you need to know about the game, this article by Emma Smith on the BBC Sport website is a very good read.
Leicester City’s WSL survival bid - this newsletter has already looked at the role that Sam Tierney is playing in Leicester’s attempts to retain their top flight position this season, but it is a team effort, and Flo Lloyd-Hughes has explained for The Athletic how Willie Kirk has changed the side around and got them believing once again.
Lend me your ears….
NWSL Weekend Recap: Sophia Smith becomes the youngest and fastest to score 25 regular season goals - with the NWSL continuing to throw out talking points and interesting scorelines each week, it can be tricky to keep track of everything that has been going on. However, a good podcast to listen to in order to stay up to date with the league is the CBS Attacking Third, and this week’s episode is well worth a listen.
That’s all for now - back next week!!