Ameé Ruszkai

There was no shortage of big names on show when Manchester City hosted Arsenal in a bumper Women’s Super League clash in early October. A quick look through the teams and most would’ve been drawn to the likes of Chloe Kelly, Khadija Shaw, Alessia Russo, Vivianne Miedema and Mariona Caldentey, especially if they were picking out a potential match-winner. In the end, though, it was a rising teenage star who took up that role, one by the name of Iman Beney.

It was by no means a classic but Manchester United will certainly never forget the events of Wednesday night, as the Red Devils beat Valerenga 1-0 to secure their first-ever win in the Women's Champions League proper. While their formal European journey might not have started with the sort of glamour fixture many would associate the competition with, it was one that felt important to emerge from with all three points given some of the challenges ahead and United did exactly that, thanks to a first-half penalty from captain Maya Le Tissier.

Chelsea made a surprisingly sloppy start to their Women's Champions League campaign on Wednesday night, dropping two points away to a Twente side that featured just one senior international in its starting line-up. The Blues are expected to be one of the main contenders for the trophy this season but they didn't look like it here, as Sonia Bompastor's much-changed team was made to work, and work hard, for a 1-1 draw in the Netherlands.

Just six months after Arsenal stunned Lyon on their own patch in the Champions League semi-finals on their way to a second European triumph, the French giants got some revenge on Tuesday night as they spoiled the start of the Gunners' title defence with a 2-1 victory that, in truth, flattered the holders. Alessia Russo gave the hosts the lead with seven minutes on the clock but once Melchie Dumornay had quickly cancelled that out, it was all Lyon as two goals from the Haitian star secured all three points for the eight-time winners.

Plenty of American stars have played in Europe's premier competition but those who have won it make up quite an exclusive club

Just over four months after Arsenal stunned Barcelona in the Women's Champions League final to win their second European crown, the most prestigious club competition in the women's game is back this week, with the Gunners partaking in perhaps the most eye-catching fixture of matchday one as they prepare for a clash with eight-time winners Lyon, in a rematch of last season's semi-final.

With Arsenal the only English side to have been crowned champions of Europe in the women's game, the country's list of UWCL winners is quite exclusive

It looked like the script was written. With seven minutes remaining, Chloe Kelly had come back to haunt her former side, levelling things up for Arsenal at Manchester City with a superb strike that seemed to swing the momentum in the Gunners' favour. But the player who has so often been the hero in 2025, for club and country, would see her efforts reduced to a footnote as Iman Beney's even later effort condemned the north London side to a 3-2 defeat, one which ended their unbeaten start to the new Women's Super League season and leaves their title charge in a precarious position already.

Chelsea's perfect start to the new Women's Super League season came to an end on Friday night, as the Blues were held to a stalemate by Manchester United in a 1-1 draw. Sonia Bompastor's side began their title defence in winning fashion through each of the first four weeks of the season but that run was stopped by the Red Devils, who avoided defeat for just the second time in 12 meetings with the London club.

Since reforming its women's team seven years ago, Manchester United have been working towards having weeks like this. On Friday night, they face champions Chelsea in a huge clash at the top of the Women's Super League. Then, five days later, they host Valerenga in their first-ever game in the Women's Champions League proper. So much work has been done to get the Red Devils to this point, where they are in Europe's premier competition and battling for the top domestic honours, and yet, it just doesn't feel like they are ready for the challenge ahead.

“Written in the stars, wasn’t it?” Mary Earps is referring to this season’s Champions League draw, which has pitted her Paris Saint-Germain side against former club Manchester United. Unsurprisingly, Earps’ phone pinged “straight away”, with Ella Toone the predictable name to pop up. “There’s a lot of familiar faces that I’m looking forward to seeing,” she says, with the two to meet at Old Trafford next month.

No Chelsea player had ever scored in the Blues' first four games of a Women's Super League campaign - until Aggie Beever-Jones did exactly that on Sunday to set the defending champions on their way to a dominant 4-0 win that was certainly eventful. With records broken, plenty of goals scored and a stunning red card for Ines Belloumou, for pulling the hair of United States star Alyssa Thompson, those in attendance certainly got their money's worth when it came to action - though it was the kind which only the away end could really enjoy.

Midfield is certainly not one of England's best-stocked positions but Laura Blindkilde Brown continues to show that she could be a fantastic option for Sarina Wiegman as a new international cycle nears, with her putting in another excellent performance for Manchester City in Sunday's 4-1 win over London City Lionesses. It was a tricky game at times for the hosts but goals from Blindkilde Brown, Vivianne Miedema and a Bunny Shaw double allowed them to secure a third successive Women's Super League win for the first time since last November.

Last time Manchester City fans saw Grace Clinton in action, she was wearing the red of their biggest rivals and kickstarting a Manchester United comeback that allowed the Red Devils to secure Champions League football at their expense. They'll have had much more favourable feelings towards the England international last Friday, then, as she re-introduced herself to those who suffered in the away end at Old Trafford back in May by netting a goal for the other side of the city, one which put them 4-0 up at Tottenham.

Everton might not have had any players in the Lionesses’ squad as they lifted the European Championship title this past summer but the Toffees’ influence on England’s success was certainly significant. Chloe Kelly, who made her breakthrough on Merseyside, was the most prominent example, after reprising her role as a national hero on more than one occasion. However, it is the more recent cases of Aggie Beever-Jones and Jess Park that have helped Everton carve out a glowing, and growing, reputation as the place to be right now if you are an aspiring Lioness.

It's incredible to think that, four years ago, Aitana Bonmati was the subject of one of the most shocking snubs in Ballon d'Or history. After playing a starring role in Barcelona's first Women's Champions League triumph, the midfielder looked sure to be in the mix for the Golden Ball - and yet, she didn't even make the 20-player shortlist. Did she take it personally? Knowing her focus on team over individual, perhaps not, but she's certainly made herself impossible to ignore in the interim, with Bonmati claiming a third successive Ballon d'Or on Monday.

The Ballon d'Or. Love it or loathe it, it's the award every footballer in the world dreams of one day winning. And now, after a memorable 2024-25 campaign, the winner of the 2025 Women's Golden Ball has been announced: Aitana Bonmati. The Barcelona star was exceptional for her club this past year, her world-class consistency standing out as the Catalans won a domestic treble, while her performances for Spain were enough to make her the Euro 2025 Player of the Tournament.

Aitana Bonmati claimed her third successive Ballon d'Or on Monday, beating out competition from Spain team-mate Mariona Caldentey and Lionesses star Alessia Russo. The Arsenal duo got the better of Bonmati's Barcelona in this year's Champions League final but it was she who was called to the stage again in Paris, joining Lionel Messi and Michel Platini as the only other players to win the Golden Ball three years in a row.