Preview:Liverpool Women vs Chelsea Women - prediction, team news, lineups

Chelsea Women will continue their Women’s Super League title bid with an away clash against struggling Liverpool Women on Sunday.

The reigning champions are sitting in second spot in the standings, while the Reds are languishing in 11th position.

Match preview

Gareth Taylor has found life difficult in his first season as Liverpool boss, having seen his side muster just one point from their opening eight league games.

Taylor’s charges did at least claim their first point of the season in last Sunday’s home meeting with Brighton & Hove Albion, although they would have been disappointed to miss out on all three points.

Beata Olsson scored a 26th-minute opener to put Liverpool in a strong position, only to see her effort cancelled out by a stoppage-time equaliser.

As a result, Liverpool are one of two teams yet to win a WSL game this season, along with basement side Leicester City, who are just behind the Reds on goal difference.

Having scored just four league goals this season, the division’s second-lowest scorers need to improve in the final third if they are to start progressing up the standings.

They will have their work cut out in Sunday's clash against the champions, although they may be able to draw inspiration from the fact that they were the last team to beat Chelsea in the WSL in May 2024, when Gemma Bonner scored a stoppage-time winner to seal a 4-3 victory.

Chelsea have put together a 33-game unbeaten league run since that defeat to the Reds, equalling their own record for the longest undefeated streak in the WSL.

The Blues matched that record with a 1-1 draw in last Saturday's away clash against Arsenal, although they would have been frustrated to drop to second place following Manchester City's win over Everton.

Sonia Bompastor's side returned to winning ways in Tuesday's Women's Champions League clash against St. Polten, with Catarina Macario and Sam Kerr grabbing a brace apiece in a dominant 6-0 victory.

That result took Chelsea's tally to seven points from three matches, leaving them in fourth place in the league phase and in a strong position to reach the knockout rounds.

The Blues will now turn their focus back to league action, knowing that a draw or a win would see them set a new record for the longest unbeaten run in WSL history.

They will be looking to make another fast start to proceedings, having scored seven of their 15 league goals inside the opening 15 minutes of the season.

Liverpool Women Women's Super League form:

L L L L L D

Liverpool Women form (all competitions):

L L L W L D

Chelsea Women Women's Super League form:

W W D W W D

Chelsea Women form (all competitions):

D W W W D W

Team News

Liverpool are without long-term absentees Zara Shaw, Marie Hobinger and Sophie Roman Haug, with the trio all working on their rehabilitation from anterior cruciate ligament injuries.

The Reds also have doubts over the fitness of Lucy Parry and the former Chelsea duo of Bonner and Alejandra Bernabe.

Olsson will continue to lead the line for the hosts after finding the net in the last two matches against Brighton and Spurs.

Chelsea remain without the injured trio of Kadeisha Buchanan, Brooke Aspin and Mayra Ramirez, while Aggie Beever-Jones is a doubt after sitting out the previous two games through injury.

Livia Peng will feature in goal for a second consecutive game, with Hannah Hampton at risk of missing the rest of the year with a quad injury.

Norway international Guro Reiten is unlikely to be involved after missing the last two matches due to parental leave.

Liverpool Women possible starting lineup:

Kirby; Shimizu, Clark, Fisk, Woodham; Nagano, Kerr; Holland, Kapocs, Enderby; Olsson

Chelsea Women possible starting lineup:

Peng; Carpenter, Bright, Bjorn, Charles; Kaptein, Walsh, Cuthbert; Rytting Kaneryd, Thompson, Macario

We say: Liverpool Women 0-2 Chelsea Women

Liverpool have lost seven of their eight league games this season, and we think that the struggling hosts will fall to another defeat when they take on a Chelsea side who will be determined to claim all three points to keep pace with Man City at the top of the table.

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