🏅 WSL Awards: The new normal, Eidevall explodes, fantastic free-kick | OneFootball

The new Barclays FA Women’s Super League season kicked off over the weekend and there was so much to sink your teeth into.

With more coverage and attention than ever, the WSL is going from strength to strength. Here’s the best of the weekend.

The New Normal Award

If you tuned into Sky on Friday night, you’d have seen two England icons talking through how Manchester United were likely to line up against Reading. Sounds pretty normal, doesn’t it? But it felt special seeing this amount of attention on the women’s game.

And Karen Carney and Casey Stoney were spot on, too, as Ella Toone impressed and assisted both United goals in the season opener.

The future has arrived.

Goal of the Weekend

Sorry Beth Mead, who would win this on almost any other weekend. And the same to Steph Houghton, who somehow didn’t even hit our favourite free-kick on Saturday.

Sarah Mayling’s absolute screamer set Aston Villa up for a brilliant win from behind against newly-promoted Leicester.

The Award for Laying Down a Marker (shared)

Manchester City went to Everton, widely tipped to compete with the top three this season, without a number of key players from the start and they left with a 4-0 win.

What a performance. Chelsea were deserved champions last season but City took them all the way.

And what about Arsenal? The Gunners ended Chelsea’s five year unbeaten away run in the league to record their first victory over the Blues since October 2018 in front of almost 9,000 fans at the Emirates Stadium.

Are we going to have a three-way title race? You better believe it.

Happiest Manager Award

Who else? Jonas Eidevall was clearly ecstatic to lead Arsenal to victory as he made his WSL bow.

Unhappiest Manager Award

Carla Ward may have led Aston Villa to victory but she wasn’t happy with the way her side played.

“The overall display was really poor actually,” she said after the game. “Delighted with the mindset, the reaction, that we found a way. I don’t need to tell them that was a good performance, because it wasn’t!

“The fact we’ve had an off day, we’ve not played very well, we’ve not looked after the ball and we’ve come away with a win is so pleasing.

“The message was clear at the break, the first half simply wasn’t good enough, not by anyone’s standards if you’re going to wear an Aston Villa shirt this season.”

The Say It How It Is Award

“The negative is that by putting our product in such a brilliant place, everyone is asking why we don’t have goal line technology or why we don’t have VAR,” Emma Hayes said after Chelsea conceded an offside goal in their 3-1 defeat to Arsenal.

“I heard that there was a conversation around it not being a priority because it’s really expensive, but I think we’re selling our game short.

“We have all got used to VAR and goal line technology, so I feel by not having it in the women’s game is like being second-class citizens.”

The Ones to Watch

A quick word for Brighton, who started the season in style with a 2-0 win over West Ham.

The Seagulls flattered to deceive a bit last season, recording some eye-opening wins over Chelsea and Man Utd as well as taking points off of Man City and Everton. But they also lost half of their matches and conceded 41 times in 22 games.

Keep an eye on them this season.