Record-breaking Nobs compared to Modric
Aston Villa midfielder Jordan Nobbs became the Women's Super League's all-time capped player when she played in her 193rd WSL match in an entertaining 4-2 loss to Brighton. Villa manager Robert de Pauw said: [Luka] Modric in midfield. If I had to compare myself to a certain player, it would be him. I have all the respect in the world for what she does and the level she brings. The 71-time capped England international has been given a deeper role by De Pauw, rather than as the number 10 he was known for earlier in his career, and De Pauw has spoken about the 31-year-old former Arsenal player. He said: “If you can read the game as well as Jordan does, you can play both roles.” T.G.
Match report: Brighton 4-2 Aston Villa
Kaminski remains sent off from Palace
Crystal Palace head coach Laura Kaminsky is determined not to get carried away after her team's first WSL win. Leicester conceded 11 goals without scoring in their opening games against Tottenham and Chelsea, with the promoted side earning a deserved victory and Kaminski told the Guardian: The players deserved points for their performance. We have worked extremely hard and survived a really tough start in the WSL. And it was great to keep their minds focused and learning throughout the weeks we had and being able to apply that execution today. Right now, we really need to keep our feet on the ground and not be too high with the highs and not be too low with the lows. When we lost, I asked the players to do their best, so I don't plan on having them celebrate too vigorously from now on. It's only one game, but we need to take a positive view and keep trying to really improve. ” T.G.
Brandt Arsenal faces a familiar problem
There was a similar old story when Arsenal played Everton to a goalless draw at the Emirates. The inability to break through deep and compact defences, which has been a continuing theme during the Jonas Eidevall era, resulted in them dropping two more points. The statistics point to the heart of the problem. Arsenal created 21 chances but only had five shots on target. Such helplessness in front of goal is unlikely to allow for a title challenge. In contrast, this performance gave Everton a much-needed boost after a difficult start to the season. Brian Sorensen praised his team for digging deep to bring home important points. “The resilience, the unity, the willingness to fight for each other, the calmness, the composure…I’m so proud of them,” he said. SD
Introducing the deep strengths of cities
Manchester City comfortably defeated West Ham 2-0 and took the lead. Gareth Taylor made five changes to his eleven, with Gilles Lord starting for the first time since suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury. Chloe Kelly, Laura Blindkilde-Brown and Mary Fowler made their first league starts of the season, while Vivian Miedema and Khadijah Shaw were on the bench. City struggled to extend their advantage after Lauren Hemp's 10th-minute opening goal, but things changed when Shaw came on to assist Fowler's fourth touch. “I'm really happy,” Taylor said. “We've obviously changed some things with the new guys coming in. We've got to be patient until they get used to it and get into a rhythm. In the second half, we brought in from the sideline. I felt I needed it and thanks to Bunny I was able to do it [Shaw] and Aoba [Fujino]. I feel like my options have improved this season and that will help the team. ” Eh
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Lundgaard's injury puts Liverpool's victory in doubt
Liverpool's first win of the WSL season was marred by what appeared to be a serious injury to midfielder Sophie Lundgaard. The 22-year-old was sent off after her left knee buckled during a challenge on Tottenham's Amanda Nilden. Lundgaard left the pitch in tears in the 32nd minute with the help of two physios. Liverpool manager Matt Beard said her injury was “probably” related to her anterior cruciate ligament. “My heart breaks for Sophie,” he said. “I think you could see at half-time that the girls were clearly upset about the Sophie Lundgaard situation, and that Marie Hebinger was putting pressure on herself to win the game at half-time. I know.” Eh
