Related items

• Women's Super League predictions: Leicester need Christmas miracle against rampant Chelsea

  This weekend marks the final Women's Super League matchday before the winter break. 

  Chelsea will look to cement their perfect start at the top of the table when they visit Leicester City on Saturday, having won all 14 of their matches under Sonia Bompastor in all competitions.

  The Blues already lead Manchester City by five points, and Gareth Taylor's challengers could find themselves further adrift by the time they visit Everton on Sunday.

  Elsewhere, Arsenal will defend their unbeaten record under interim coach Renee Slegers at Liverpool, while bottom-of-the-table Crystal Palace host Manchester United.

  Surprise package Brighton and Hove Albion, meanwhile, will attempt to bounce back from a 4-2 loss to Chelsea when they welcome Tottenham to Broadfield Stadium. 

  But who will come out on top in this weekend's matches? We turned to the trusty Opta supercomputer to get its matchday 10 predictions.

   

  LEICESTER V CHELSEA

  Bompastor has already made the best start by any WSL coach in the competition's history, and Chelsea could become the first team to ever win their first 10 games of a season when they visit Leicester for Saturday's early kick-off at the King Power Stadium.

  Chelsea have got an exceptional record against the Foxes, who have lost each of the teams' previous six WSL meetings, averaging over six goals conceded per game across the last five (32 conceded – 6.4 per game). 

  With Chelsea already netting 30 times in nine games, there could be goals, goals and more goals in this one. Leicester should be particularly wary of Aggie Beever-Jones, who has now scored 17 goals in the WSL – only Lauren Hemp (31), Georgia Stanway (29) and Beth Mead (18) have netted more in the competition before turning 22. 

  Chelsea have made a habit of starting strongly this term, opening the scoring in all nine of their WSL matches. They have won 43 of their last 44 league games after going 1-0 up, the exception being a 4-3 defeat to Liverpool in May.

  The Foxes have struggled in front of goal this season, failing to score in more games than any other team in the WSL (seven). Only one team has ever scored fewer goals through nine matches of a WSL campaign than the Foxes’ two this term (Yeovil Town, 0 in 2017-18).

   

  Chelsea are overwhelming favourites for this one and the Opta Supercomputer gives them 83.1% chance of victory, with 9.3% of match simulations ending level. Leicester may need a Christmas miracle to earn three points, being assigned just a 7.6% win probability.

  BRIGHTON V TOTTENHAM

  Brighton will look to get back to winning ways after putting up a valiant effort against Chelsea in their last league game. The Seagulls will also want to remain among the chasing pack and a win would lift them to third ahead of Sunday's matches. 

  However, Brighton have failed to win any of their last five WSL meetings with Tottenham (two draws, three losses), since a 2-1 home win in October 2021 under Hope Powell. 

  They have enjoyed a terrific start to the season, though, particularly at home. Brighton are unbeaten on their own turf in the WSL in 2024-25, winning four of their five matches (one draw) – as many wins as they recorded in their previous 25 such games (four draws, 17 defeats).

  There could be drama in this one as nine of the total 13 penalties awarded in the WSL this term have come in games involving either Brighton (two for, two against) or Spurs (two for, three against). Both sides, meanwhile, boast plenty of attacking ammunition.

  Kiko Seike is Brighton’s leading scorer in the WSL this season, netting five times from just 15 shots to register the best conversion rate of any player to net three or more times (33%). 

  Meanwhile, only Mead and Khadija Shaw (eight apiece) have scored more WSL goals against Brighton than Spurs’ Beth England (seven), who is now just three goals away from levelling Vivianne Miedema at the top of the all-time WSL scoring charts.

  The Opta supercomputer makes Brighton slight favourites with a 43.1% win probability, with Spurs given a 30.2% chance and 26.7% of simulations finishing all square.

  EVERTON V MAN CITY

  Merseyside is a very happy hunting ground for Manchester City and they will be looking forward to travelling to Walton Hall Park for Sunday's first match.

  City have won more away WSL games against Everton (eight) than any other team, while they have only netted more times on the road against Brighton and Bristol City (both 25) than versus the Toffees (24). 

  The Citizens are firm favourites with the supercomputer, winning 73.8% of match simulations to Everton's 11.5%, with 14.5% finishing level.

  Everton’s only league win this season came in their most recent home game against Liverpool; they could now win back-to-back home WSL matches for the first time since January 2023. 

  City, meanwhile, have dropped points in two of their last four away games (2-2 versus Arsenal, 0-2 versus Chelsea) after winning 10 of their previous 11 such matches.

  Everton will have to deal with current Golden Boot frontrunner 'Bunny' Shaw, who has scored nine goals so far this term. Five of those strikes have come via her head, and she has more such goals in total (24) than any other player in WSL history.

   

  ASTON VILLA V WEST HAM 

  Aston Villa will welcome West Ham to Villa Park for a clash between two sides hovering above the danger zone. Sunday's hosts sit ninth on six points, just two behind eighth-placed West Ham.

  Villa picked up their first victory of the campaign in their last home game against Crystal Palace (3-2) and could now win back-to-back home games in the WSL for the first time. They have played the most home games in the competition without ever winning two in a row (48).

  It should be a day to remember for Jordan Nobbs, as the WSL's all-time leading appearance-maker brings up 200 outings in the competition. She scored on her 100th outing in the WSL back in October 2018, representing Arsenal against Bristol City.

  Villa are in need of results to ensure they are not dragged into the mire, and the supercomputer is backing them here, with a 53.2% win probability. West Ham are given a 22.8% chance of a victory and a 23.9% chance of taking a point.

   

  CRYSTAL PALACE V MAN UTD

  Sunday's slate of games also features the first league meeting between Palace and Manchester United since the 2018-19 Championship season, when the Red Devils trounced the Eagles 5-0 away and 7-0 at home. 

  Palace sit bottom of the table and are expected to remain there for Christmas, with the supercomputer only giving them a 13.6% chance of earning three points. United, meanwhile, are given a 69.6% chance of victory and a 16.8% probability of a draw.

  United have a perfect record against newly promoted opposition in the WSL, winning all 10 such games while scoring 29 goals and only conceding once.

  Marc Skinner's side claimed their biggest win of the season last weekend, winning 4-0 against Liverpool; each of the Red Devils’ last six league victories – and 12 of their last 14 – have been accompanied by a clean sheet. 

  Only Chelsea (nine times), Arsenal (seven) and United (six) have opened the scoring on more occasions in the WSL than Palace (five) this season, though the Eagles have dropped a league-high 10 points from winning positions – if they do find themselves ahead, the challenge will be holding on.

  LIVERPOOL V ARSENAL

  The final fixture of the weekend sees Arsenal visit Liverpool, having looked a team transformed since Slegers took the reins from Jonas Eidevall.

  The Gunners have won their last three league games, last winning four in a row in the WSL in December 2023, when they enjoyed a run of seven victories.

  In their five WSL games under Slegers to date, Arsenal have scored exactly once (v Man Utd), twice (v West Ham), three times (v Spurs), four times (v Aston Villa) and five times (v Brighton); the Gunners have not scored six times in a league match since beating Leicester 6-2 last November.

  On the opposing bench, Matt Beard will not be looking forward to Arsenal's visit. He has lost 16 of his 20 previous WSL meetings with Arsenal (three wins, one draw), losing to the Gunners with each of his clubs – seven times with Liverpool, four with West Ham and Chelsea, once with Bristol City.

  The main threat to Liverpool could be Alessia Russo, who endured a slow start to the season but has since scored in four straight WSL games. She could become just the sixth Arsenal player to net in five in a row, and the first since Mead in May 2022. 

  Arsenal are big favourites with a 63% chance of victory, while Liverpool are assigned just a 17.4% hope and a 19.6% chance of earning a draw.

   

• Warriors coach Kerr fuming after last-gasp call costs them NBA Cup semifinal spot

  Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was fuming after his team lost 91-90 to the Houston Rockets in the NBA Cup on Wednesday following a contentious officiating call.

  The Warriors had been a point up in the final seconds of the fourth quarter when Stephen Curry missed a 3-point attempt, which resulted in a scramble for possession and bodies hitting the floor.

  Gary Payton II got possession of a rebound on the floor, but Houston guard Fred VanVleet slid on top of him with Payton attempting to pass to Warriors team-mate Jonathan Kuminga.

  Kuminga and Jalen Green, of the Rockets, ended up on the floor to get the loose ball, but Kuminga was called for a personal foul with 3.5 seconds to go. Green then hit both free throws to send the Rockets through to the semifinals in Las Vegas.

  "I'm p***** off," Kerr said, following the game. "I wanted to go to Las Vegas.

  "We wanted to win this cup, and we aren't going because of a loose ball foul, 80 feet from the basket with the game on the line. I've never seen anything like it in my life, and that was ridiculous.

  "I've never seen a loose ball foul on a jump ball situation, 80 feet from the basket with the game on the line. 

  "I've never seen that. I think I saw it in college one time 30 years ago. Never seen it in the NBA. That is, I mean, unconscionable. I don't even understand what just happened.

  "Loose ball, diving on the floor, 80 feet from the basket, and you're going to give a guy two free throws to decide the game when people are scrambling for the ball?

  "Just give them a timeout and let the players decide the game. That's how you officiate. Especially because the game was a complete wrestling match. They didn't call anything.

  "So you've established you're just not going to call anything throughout the game.

  "It's a physical game, and call a loose ball foul on a jump ball situation with guys diving on the floor? With the game on the line? This is a billion-dollar industry. You got people's jobs on the line."

  Officiating crew chief Bill Kennedy was the one who called the personal foul on Kuminga, and he explained his decision after the game.

  "The defender makes contact with the neck and shoulder area, warranting a personal foul to be called," he said.

  Regardless, Warriors point guard Curry echoed the emotions of his coach, saying: "I haven't seen the replay, but ... if you're telling me it was a clear foul, I'll shut up, but I don't think that's the case.

  "Was it? There's indecision in the group, so that means then let the game play out and let us decide it and not two free throws, 90 feet from the basket.

  "We can talk about the refs all day, it's not why we lost. There are swings in the game, but obviously the last two free throws and that play, it's a five-point swing."

• Premier League MD15: Lucky winners and unlucky losers

  Inclement weather forced the postponement of Saturday's Merseyside derby, but the rest of the Premier League action went ahead this past weekend.

  While Arsenal and Manchester City were held to draws at Fulham and Crystal Palace respectively, Chelsea's fine form continued as they claimed a 4-3 comeback win over Tottenham.

  Enzo Maresca's team are now four points behind Liverpool, who have a game in hand.

  Ruben Amorim, meanwhile, suffered his first home defeat as Manchester United boss, as Nottingham Forest won 3-2 at Old Trafford, while there was another big home win for Brentford, who beat Newcastle United 4-2.

  Southampton lost to Aston Villa, Bournemouth broke Ipswich Town hearts and Leicester City fought back late on against Brighton. But, which teams were lucky to get the points, and who can consider themselves unfortunate?

  Here, we use Opta data to find out.

  Unlucky losers: Manchester United

  It was not a great weekend for Man Utd. On Sunday, news broke that sporting director Dan Ashworth, who the club had pushed hard to bring in, had left his role after just five months at Old Trafford.

  That announcement came after United's loss to Forest on Saturday, though, as Chris Wood's header - his club-record-setting 25th Premier League goal for the visitors - proved decisive as new Red Devils boss Amorim suffered back-to-back losses. 

  Bruno Fernandes and Rasmus Hojlund were on target for United, but the defensive frailties that had been evident under Amorim's predecessor Erik ten Hag, again, came back to bite them.

   

  United finished with an expected goals against (xGA) of just 0.8, yet Forest scored three times. While that suggests the quality of finishing by Nuno Espirito Santo's team was high (indeed, their xG on target was 1.5), it also hints at a slice of misfortune for Amorim's men.

  Only Brentford and Chelsea (both eight) had more shots on target across the weekend than United (seven), who also hit the woodwork. However, the Red Devils made two errors leading to goals, and at the highest level, you are bound to get punished.

  Lucky winners: Fulham

  Fulham continue to punch above their weight under Marco Silva, and after taking an early lead against Arsenal, the Cottagers ultimately showed strong resolve to hold on for a 1-1 draw amid plenty of pressure from the Gunners on Sunday.

  Bukayo Saka thought he had headed in a late winner at Craven Cottage, only for VAR to spot Gabriel Martinelli had drifted offside before delivering the cross that found the England winger.

  While Fulham did not take all three points, a draw in such circumstances will almost certainly feel like a victory for Silva's side and their supporters. And the metrics suggest they did get somewhat fortunate.

  Not to take away from their strong defensive rearguard, but Fulham only accumulated 0.2 xG, the lowest total in the league across the weekend. They also had the fewest shots (two), though they did get both of those on target.

  Arsenal's 2.0 xG, meanwhile, was the fifth-highest total on matchday 15, and Fulham did give up four big chances (defined as an opportunity from which a player would be expected to score), with the Gunners only able to take one of them - when William Saliba turned home their equaliser from point-blank range.

  Indeed, Arsenal's 8.3% shot conversion rate tells its own story. Had Mikel Arteta's team had their shooting boots on, the result would likely have been much different.

  Unlucky losers: Tottenham

  Ange Postecoglou is getting a fair bit of scrutiny at the moment, with his swashbuckling style of play coming under fire from both fans and pundits.

  Yet Spurs actually mustered a slightly higher xG (2.9) than Chelsea (2.8) in their 4-3 loss on Sunday.

   

  Sure, it is a bad look that Tottenham gave up a 2-0 lead to go down 4-2 before Son Heung-min grabbed another in stoppage time, but the Blues did get two penalties.

  Without those spot-kicks, Chelsea's xG was 1.25, so Spurs' defence did perhaps not give up the quality of opportunities that one might expect for a team that had shipped four goals.

  That being said, they did concede 17 shots, with only three teams across the weekend allowing more, and there is no doubt Postecoglou has to find a way to tighten up at the back.