who will make her return to national colours later this month<\/a>, came off the bench in the 78th minute in her sixth appearance since returning from an ACL injury. <\/p>\nThe 32-year-old marked her comeback with a goal in a 3-1 win against Aston Villa last month, and it happened to be her 100th for the club but she has not got her name on the scoresheet since. <\/p>\n
Manager Sonia Bompastor is clearly being cautious with building up the striker\u2019s match fitness as she is yet to start since returning to the side.<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>KINGSTON UPON THAMES, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 12: Sam Kerr of Chelsea is challenged by Toko Koga of Tottenham Hotspur during the Barclays Women’s Super League match between Chelsea FC and Tottenham Hotspur at Kingsmeadow on October 12, 2025 in Kingston upon Thames, England. (Photo by Richard Heathcote\/Getty Images)<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nCarpenter, on the other hand, has been thrust straight into a starting role since joining from French outfit Lyon in the off season.<\/p>\n
The 25-year-old has started at right back in all bar one match across all competitions since the beginning of the season, and has been a revelation in London.<\/p>\n
She assisted on her Chelsea debut last month as well as against Tottenham in her last outing.<\/p>\n
Carpenter was also named in last week\u2019s UEFA Women\u2019s Champions League team of the week for blocking two shots and whipping in several crosses in an impressive display in Chelsea\u2019s 1-1 draw with FC Twente.<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>KINGSTON UPON THAMES, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 12: Ellie Carpenter of Chelsea in action during the Barclays Women’s Super League match between Chelsea FC and Tottenham Hotspur at Kingsmeadow on October 12, 2025 in Kingston upon Thames, England. (Photo by Richard Heathcote\/Getty Images)<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u201cShe\u2019s a great character and I think she brings happiness to everyone,\u201d Bompastor said of Carpenter after Chelsea\u2019s 1-0 win against Leicester City last month. <\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s always smiling and she has a lot of positive energy, not only on the pitch, but also she\u2019s full of energy outside the pitch. She\u2019s settled in well with the team in London.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s really happy right now and shares that happiness, so that\u2019s also something important for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
England defender Lucy Bronze is regaining full fitness, however, and Bompastor faces an interesting dilemma to squeeze in the two right backs.<\/p>\n
Although, the French manager recently said that Carpenter and Bronze can play in the same starting XI, one at right full-back and the other as a right wing-back. <\/p>\n<\/amp-img>LEIGH, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 03: Sonia Bompastor, Manager of Chelsea, speaks to Ellie Carpenter of Chelsea during the Barclays Women’s Super League match between Manchester United and Chelsea FC at Leigh Sports Village on October 03, 2025 in Leigh, England. (Photo by Molly Darlington\/Getty Images)<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nCaitlin Foord <\/b>has bounced in and out of Arsenal\u2019s starting XI in the Gunners\u2019 opening seven games across the WSL and Champions League, starting in four of them and coming on as a substitute in one other.<\/p>\n
Foord has one goal to her name, in Arsenal\u2019s 5-1 rout of West Ham, but got the intercept in the middle of the pitch that led to the decisive goal against Brighton on the weekend.<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>BOREHAMWOOD, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 07: Caitlin Foord of Arsenal looks on during the UEFA Women’s Champions League 2025\/26 league phase match between Arsenal FC and OL Lyonnes at Meadow Park on October 07, 2025 in Borehamwood, England. (Photo by James Fearn\/Getty Images)<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nSteph Catley <\/b>has started every match at centre back for the Champions League defending champions. <\/p>\n
Catley, who has captained the Matildas in Kerr\u2019s absence in recent times, also provided an assist in Arsenal\u2019s season-opening victory against the London City Lionesses.<\/p>\n
Kyra Cooney-Cross <\/b>has received more game time in a boost for the Matildas as the 23-year-old midfielder has come off the bench in the Gunners\u2019 last three matches, including their Champions League opener against Lyon.<\/p>\n
Those opportunities came after Arsenal legend Ian Wright called out manager Renee Slegers for not giving Cooney-Cross enough minutes, following a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa at the Emirates.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe 25 minutes earlier in the game bring on a Kyra Cooney-Cross into the game, who wants to come on \u2013 she needs games \u2013 to get the ball forward, to get the ball forward with some energy, get some people running on to the ball,\u201d Wright said.<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 12: Kyra Cooney-Cross of Arsenal warms up prior to the Barclays Women’s Super League match between Arsenal and Brighton & Hove Albion at Emirates Stadium on October 12, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Pantling\/Getty Images)<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nArsenal lost to Lyon 2-1, who kept goalkeeper Teagan Micah <\/b>on the bench as an used substitute, in a turnaround from last season\u2019s semi-final, <\/p>\n
The Gunners also sit fifth in the WSL, five points shy of Chelsea, in an underwhelming start to the season.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think we\u2019ve got the points from all the games that we\u2019ve wanted to,\u201d Catley said last week. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve had some really positive patches of football. It\u2019s just been down to lapses in concentration, some set pieces, some things that we\u2019ve really talked about this week and after this game in particular.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe league\u2019s not won and lost this early on. It\u2019s a long season and we just need to focus our attention on the next game.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Champions League is right here, right in front of our faces. We\u2019re excited to be focused on this one. We\u2019ve got an incredible squad full of extremely talented players. Obviously, we put it all together and were able to go all the way last year. It was last year and we\u2019re very proud of what we achieved.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 12: Steph Catley of Arsenal acknowledges the fans after the team’s victory in the Barclays Women’s Super League match between Arsenal and Brighton & Hove Albion at Emirates Stadium on October 12, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Pantling\/Getty Images)<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nClare Hunt <\/b>started for Tottenham against Chelsea, while her Spurs teammate Charli Grant <\/b>came off the bench in the second half.<\/p>\n
Hunt had a moment to forget as Carpenter picked off one of her passes, and that led to Chelsea\u2019s winning goal, but the defender has had a promising start to the season regardless of that blunder.<\/p>\n
The 26-year-old has started all six matches of the Super League season so far for Tottenham, serving as a key cog at centre back in a team that has kept three clean sheets in their four victories to date.<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>KINGSTON UPON THAMES, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 12: Ellie Carpenter of Chelsea clashes with Clare Hunt and Eveliina Summanen of Tottenham Hotspur during the Barclays Women’s Super League match between Chelsea FC and Tottenham Hotspur at Kingsmeadow on October 12, 2025 in Kingston upon Thames, England. (Photo by Richard Heathcote\/Getty Images)<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nGrant meanwhile has only started once for the season, and it came in a 5-1 thrashing at the hands of Manchester City, who remain without Mary Fowler <\/b>as she continues her recovery from an ACL injury.<\/p>\n
The 24-year-old defender has not been confined to the bench, however, coming on as a substitute in four other matches.<\/p>\n
Clare Wheeler <\/b>has started the last five games in a row for Everton after coming off the bench in the Toffees\u2019 4-1 Merseyside derby victory to open the season.<\/p>\n
The 27-year-old has fought admirably in midfield as Everton have managed just one point from their past five matches.<\/p>\n
Emily van Egmond <\/b>has started every game of the season for Leicester City, shifting between playing as a centre forward and an attacking midfielder at various times.<\/p>\n
The 32-year-old, who joined Leicester last month, has found the back of the net once in six games, scoring the winner for the Foxes against Liverpool in her first home game.<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 24: Clare Wheeler of Everton reacts during the Subway Women’s League Cup match between Manchester City and Everton at Joie Stadium on September 24, 2025 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Charlotte Tattersall\/Getty Images)<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nKatrina Gorry <\/b>wears the captain\u2019s armband for West Ham, but the midfielder is enduring a tough time as the Hammers have lost six out of six matches to start the season.<\/p>\n
The latest of which was against Alanna Kennedy <\/b>and the London City Lionesses with Kennedy being used as a second half substitute.<\/p>\n
The 30-year-old defender has assumed that role throughout the Lionesses\u2019 current three match winning streak, having started in heavy defeats to Manchester United and Arsenal after joining from Angel City FC in Los Angeles at the start of the season.<\/p>\n
Charlie Rule <\/b>has started in all six matches for Brighton with the 22-year-old defender playing a key role in a team that has conceded only five goals in six games.<\/p>\n
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA<\/b><\/p>\n
Mackenzie Arnold <\/b>has started 17 matches in goals for Portland Thorns this National Women\u2019s Soccer League season.<\/p>\n
The penalty shootout hero from the 2023 World Cup has not had the easiest time of things between the sticks for the seventh-placed Thorns, making 60 saves, conceding 25 goals and keeping just two clean sheets.<\/p>\n
Arnold\u2019s teammate Kaitlyn Torpey <\/b>has been seen less frequently for Portland, starting 12 times and coming off the bench in four others.<\/p>\n
The defender was an unused substitute in their 1-0 loss to the Orlando Pride in their last outing.<\/p>\n
Cortnee Vine <\/b>has also made infrequent appearances for the North Carolina Courage, making five starts and coming off the bench nine times.<\/p>\n
The 27-year-old winger has also scored one goal for the season, scoring in the opening minute of a 2-1 victory against Angel City FC in June.<\/p>\n
GERMANY<\/b><\/p>\n
Hayley Raso <\/b>joined Eintracht Frankfurt before the start of the season after a frustrating spell a Tottenham, and has been five appearances in the Frauen-Bundesliga so far.<\/p>\n
The 31-year-old winger is yet to find the back of the net for her new club as she has predominantly been used off the bench.<\/p>\n
Raso captained the Matildas in recent friendlies against Slovenia and Panama, and is currently on 99 matches for the national side.<\/p>\n
Jamilla Rankin <\/b>is also plying her trade in Germany, with the defender taking on a starting role at left-back for Hoffenheim.<\/p>\n
The 22-year-old even scored her first goal for the club earlier this month.<\/p>\n
SWEDEN<\/b><\/p>\n
Daniela Galic <\/b>is enjoying a stellar season for Vittsj\u00f6 GIK, scoring four goals and providing an assist in ten games as a midfielder in the Damallsvenskan.<\/p>\n
The 19-year-old scored in their most recent outing, a 3-2 win against Brommapojkarna, and has been a regular starter since moving to Sweden from Dutch club Twente, where she received limited game time.<\/p>\n
Courtney Nevin <\/b>is a regular stater for Malmo, and the defender has provided one assist in ten games.<\/p>\n
Remy Siemsen<\/b> and Amy Sayer<\/b> are both receiving plenty of opportunities for Kristianstads, with Sayers scoring two goals and dishing off four assists so far this campaign.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, goal keeper Jada Whyman <\/b>has been unavailable for \ufeffAIK Fotboll.<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>CALCIO – Serie A Femminile – Serie A Women s Cup – AS Roma vs AC Milan Winonah Heatley Roma Women during Serie A Women s Cup – AS Roma vs AC Milan, Italian football Serie A Women match in Rome, Italy, September 06 2025 Rome Italy PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxFRAxUK Copyright: xIPAxSport\/ABACAx<\/span>Source: FOX SPORTS<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nITALY<\/b><\/p>\n
Winonah Heatley <\/b>made her Serie A debut for AS Roma on the weekend, playing the full match at centre back in a come from behind 2-1 victory against AC Milan.<\/p>\n
The win kept AS Roma top of the table, so it is a good time for the 24-year-old to join the club after crossing from Danish side FC Nordsj\u00e6lland.<\/p>\n
Jessika Nash <\/b>is another newcomer to Italy with the 21-year-old defender playing the entire 90 minutes for Sassuolo in their 2-1 loss to Parma on the weekend.<\/p>\n
Nash made the move to Serie A from the Central Coast Mariners at the start of this season, while teammate Jacynta Galabadaarachchi<\/b> came off the bench against Parma.<\/p>\n
Galabadaarachchi, a 24-year-old forward, joined Sassuolo from Portugal\u2019s Sporting CP in August.<\/p>\n
Alex Chidiac <\/b>was another to make her Serie A debut as she came off the bench for Como in their 1-0 win against Juventus.<\/p>\n
The 26-year-old joined Como from Melbourne Victory.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With friendlies coming up against Wales and England later this month, it is time to check in with our Matildas in around the globe. England\u2019s Women\u2019s Super League is packed with Australian talent, and that spreads across to the UEFA Women\u2019s Champions League with several big matches taking place this week in the top European […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":207961,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6807],"tags":[12449,4854,1800,3262,5170,8223,99,2890,1808,9030,3148,1192,13524,37606,12436,1846,13588,16647,5245,64916,64920,20185,5350,19488,11654,12456,3132,85,17921,1429,64923,64915,149,59802,35090,7715,4232,1425,38568,5858,5143,621,20059,2458,64921,20909,63836,26699,62273,3745,17081,55658,1433,4996,3272,1810,3119,1415,2232,4853,22969,16449,22417,1533,1809,1427,11744,58052,2708,493,64925,64924,64579,28558,64917,7530,58849,4914,64919,21674,33479,14350,22180,54267,2457,23008,4847,900,6207,59933,1856,1792,365,3150,18145,64922,64918],"class_list":{"0":"post-207960","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-leagues-cups","8":"tag-alanna-kennedy","9":"tag-alex-chidiac","10":"tag-america","11":"tag-arsenal-football-club","12":"tag-arsenal-women","13":"tag-australian-talent","14":"tag-brighton","15":"tag-caitlin-foord","16":"tag-california","17":"tag-central-america","18":"tag-central-coast-mariners","19":"tag-champions-league","20":"tag-charli-grant","21":"tag-charlie-rule","22":"tag-chelsea-football-club","23":"tag-city-of-manchester","24":"tag-clare-hunt","25":"tag-clean-sheets","26":"tag-club-football","27":"tag-clubs-seasons","28":"tag-comprehensive-guide","29":"tag-courtney-nevin","30":"tag-decisive-goal","31":"tag-derby-victory","32":"tag-dream-start","33":"tag-ellie-carpenter","34":"tag-emirates","35":"tag-england","36":"tag-england-defender","37":"tag-europe","38":"tag-european-club-competition","39":"tag-fairing-overseas","40":"tag-football-news","41":"tag-french-manager","42":"tag-french-outfit","43":"tag-game-time","44":"tag-germany","45":"tag-getty-images-inc","46":"tag-goal-keeper","47":"tag-home-game","48":"tag-home-soil","49":"tag-ian-wright","50":"tag-italian-football","51":"tag-italy","52":"tag-jacynta-galabadaarachchi","53":"tag-jada-whyman","54":"tag-james-fearn","55":"tag-joe-montemurro","56":"tag-kaitlyn-torpey","57":"tag-katrina-gorry","58":"tag-kingston-upon-thames","59":"tag-league-phase-match","60":"tag-lega-calcio-serie-a","61":"tag-leicester-city-football-club","62":"tag-london","63":"tag-los-angeles","64":"tag-maine","65":"tag-manchester-city-football-club","66":"tag-manchester-united-football-club","67":"tag-mary-fowler","68":"tag-match-fitness","69":"tag-molly-darlington","70":"tag-national-women","71":"tag-north-america","72":"tag-northern-america","73":"tag-northern-europe","74":"tag-panama","75":"tag-penalty-shootout-hero","76":"tag-portland","77":"tag-portugal","78":"tag-positive-energy","79":"tag-positive-patches","80":"tag-reach-extensionfootball","81":"tag-regular-starter","82":"tag-regular-stater","83":"tag-remy-siemsen","84":"tag-renee-slegers","85":"tag-richard-heathcote","86":"tag-roma-women","87":"tag-rome","88":"tag-set-pieces","89":"tag-slovenia","90":"tag-soccer-league","91":"tag-sonia-bompastor","92":"tag-southern-europe","93":"tag-starting-role","94":"tag-steph-catley","95":"tag-sweden","96":"tag-talented-players","97":"tag-top-european-club","98":"tag-united-kingdom","99":"tag-united-states-of-america","100":"tag-wales","101":"tag-western-europe","102":"tag-winning-goal","103":"tag-winonah-heatley","104":"tag-women-match"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/207960","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=207960"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/207960\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/207961"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=207960"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=207960"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=207960"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}