Just 42 days after the World Cup final, the Women’s Super League returned with a bang on Sunday, with late goals, record crowds and an abundance of new names.
Following a busy summer transfer window, which of the new signings in the WSL impressed most on their debut with their new side?
Mia Fishel – Chelsea
Making an immediate impact following her summer switch to west London from Mexican outfit Tigres was United States international forward Mia Fishel, who was brought in to provide backup to Sam Kerr and to help prevent Chelsea from having to be quite as reliant on the Australia striker as they were in the second half of last season.
Fishel’s downward header from a Niamh Charles cross opened the scoring for Chelsea, whose manager Emma Hayes, speaking to Sky Sports, said of Fishel: “It was a brilliant debut from her, a tremendous performance, and that connection she has with Lauren James was there throughout. Her first touch, her hold-up play, and the way she links with Lauren James is second to none.”
Fishel, commenting on her first match at Stamford Bridge, added: “It was amazing. It’s a dream-come-come true, playing for my dream club with these amazing players. I had no doubts [in my performance] and that is kudos to Emma [Hayes] and everyone for making me feel part of the team.”
Jill Roord – Manchester City
A star midfielder with The Netherlands who was amongst the strongest players on show when her national team beat England last Tuesday, Jill Roord was Manchester City’s only summer signing this year, but Gareth Taylor’s team evidently went for quality over quantity, and they look set to be rewarded.
The club are understood to have paid in the region of £300,000 to bring in Roord from Women’s Champions League finalists Wolfsburg and the former Arsenal player made a strong impression straight away with a solid performance on the ball and a debut goal too.
The 26-year-old got in between two West Ham defenders before clinically placing a left-footed finish across goal in the far, bottom corner, to help Manchester City to a 2-0 away victory.
Geyse – Manchester United
Not on the scoresheet but nonetheless generating excitement from Manchester United supporters was their new Brazil forward Geyse Da Silva Ferreira, signed from European champions Barcelona in August.
The 25-year-old showed lots of glimpses of her skill, pace and power, as well as intelligent movement. She is currently learning English and her new manager Marc Skinner is confident that will help her even more once she is settled in with the team.
“She has a wonderful ability to win games on her own if she needs to. She can hold it and turn and go,” Skinner said. “That’s a different type of forward. Now we’ve got individuals who can do something magical and I think you’ll see that throughout the season.”
Daphne van Domselaar – Aston Villa
A key reason why Geyse didn’t net a debut goal was the agility of Aston Villa’s new number-one goalkeeper, the Netherlands star Daphne van Domselaar, who arrived from Twente this summer.
The 23-year-old, who helped the Netherlands reach the World Cup quarter-finals, did superbly to get a hand to a powerful low strike from Geyse that appeared to be heading into the bottom corner in the first half.
Van Domselaar also turned behind a well-struck Katie Zelem strike late in the second half, and Villa manager Carla Ward said: She is unbelievable. I think she has the potential to be one of the best in the world, if not the best. She had a very good debut.”
