Crystal Palace Women head back up to Birmingham to face Aston Villa on Sunday, after facing Birmingham City last weekend.
Crystal Palace's fifth Women's Super League game of the season falls on Sunday 4 October, as they head to Birmingham to face Aston Villa. The game kicks off at 2:00pm and will be available to watch on Sky Sports.
Palace were up in Birmingham just last weekend with their tense fixture against fellow promoted side Birmingham City. The game ended 3-3 with Palace coming back from an early goal by Birmingham.
Bethany England got her first goal for Palace, after ranking third in the WSL for most amount of xG created overall. Palace were unlucky not to take home three points, in a game that was really a must-win for Potter's side to prove they have what it takes to stay up.
The match was a promising sign as it saw Potter's side focus on improving their attacking output, an element that was missing in the last two games.
All is not lost after the 3-3 draw and the 7-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur the season before, as in their first four matches Palace have reached 5 points which is half of the points they received in their first season in the top flight back in 2024/25.
In the 2024/25 season Palace achieved three points in their first four games, and last season back in the WSL2 Palace also reached five points in their first four games.
The Opponents
Facing Aston Villa offers another chance for Potter's side to captivate on their struggling form and difficult start to the season, as Villa sit 13th in the table with just two draws. They took points against Chelsea and Brighton, who are both strong teams, however they are feeling the exit of some of their key players over the summer.
On Tuesday Villa announced they had parted ways with manager Natalia Arroyo after Villa have been unable to get three points this season, but also have not won in the WSL since March of last season. An interim manger has been put in charge.
Kirsty Hanson was Villa's main attacking output last season and her move to Spurs has clearly affected Villa's capacity to create chances as they have only scored three goals so far.
In their draw against Brighton Villa only created 0.03xG and only had 4 touches in Brighton's box. This was despite having 49% possession throughout the match. Villa's keeper Akane Okuma was praised for her performance to keep Villa in the match, however last weekend they were then defeated 4-0 by Spurs.
Villa's performance have produced concerns by their fans as they often look open at the back and chaotic out of possession.
With their manager removed from the role just days ago the squad is likely to still be shocked and not uniting under a new leadership and new direction, giving Potter and Palace the perfect target for their second WSL win of the season.
