September marks Crystal Palace women’s historic return to the Women’s Super League, for their second ever season in the top flight. There is no steady start for the newly promoted side as they face six matches in September, including two in the Players Cup.

This brings new challenges for the Eagles in the face of tough established competitors, and new opportunities for the Eagles to launch into the new campaign in a bid to try and remain in the top flight for more than a season.

The Eagles have not played a competitive game since early May when their promotion to the WSL was confirmed. In pre-season they have played Arsenal, Real Madrid and Oxford United, winning only the latter. It also appeared through pictures released by the club that they may have faced Brighton in a behind closed doors match.

Here’s how the month looks for the Eagles:

The first two games of Palace’s return to the WSL presents an opportunity for a good start in the league and to build up momentum for what will be a challenging month and season. The first two matches also pull up a crucial test to see how Jo Potter’s side is prepared when facing high quality opposition, especially since they played Arsenal in pre-season narrowly loosing 2-1.

What also will be important to see from this match is how ready the squad is, in terms of fitness, and also how the major additions to the squad affect the starting lineup and the style of play. Everton is the most important game, as they are a established and experienced women’s side but offer more of an opportunity for points than against Former Champions League winners Arsenal.

The Eagles third game of the season marks the first WSL game of the season at Selhurst, with a big match for fans to get behind in the iconic Palace location. This match also sees the reunion of new additions Bethany England and Molly Bartrip and their former teammates, and both the former Tottenham players could provide valuable information on how to tackle the Lilywhites.

With the Players Cup also commencing in the same month as the WSL, Palace will really feel the test in terms of fixture congestion and the step up in intensity. The summer transfer window has shown Palace do have the squad depth necessary, but it will be interesting at this point of the month to see how Potter may rotate and use some of the new additions.

The Eagles first host Watford, who have only recently been promoted to the WSL2. This match falls at the perfect time for squad rotation, but also for the Eagles to secure a good result and keep some momentum and positivity. They next face Charlton at the end of the month, also at home. This game will be more of a challenge for the Eagles, especially since Charlton have also been promoted to the WSL so this could be a true test of which team has the stronger form for the rest of the season.

On the final WSL game of the season Palace also face Birmingham City who won the WSL2 last season. This is arguably the most crucial match of the month, as it is really important for Palace to pick up some points against similar competition if they are going to set themselves above the former WSL2 sides and attempt to remain in the top flight.

September will give us an initial indication of how Palace’s season is likely to shape up. Fans will see how the big names, including Bethany England and Lexi Lloyd-Smith, are integrated into the squad and whether the playing style shifts from last season’s successful campaign. The month also shows us how Potter manages squad rotation when faced with a congested schedule and a mixture of competition, with the WSL and Cup to manage.