As the 2024/25 Women’s Super League (WSL) season reaches its midway point, Chelsea leads the title race, while clubs like Crystal Palace are aiming to secure their place in the top flight. With memorable matches and dramatic results, including Arsenal’s 2-2 draw with Manchester City on opening weekend, Liverpool’s thrilling 3-2 win over Tottenham in October, and Chelsea’s dominant 2-0 victory over City, this season has been packed with excitement. However, as we near the new year, some teams have made notable strides forward. Here are the most improved teams so far this season:
3. Chelsea
It might seem surprising to consider that a team with six titles in the past seven WSL seasons has improved, but Chelsea has managed to do just that. The departure of long-serving manager Emma Hayes and the arrival of former Lyon boss Sonia Bompastor raised questions about how the Blues would fare. However, Chelsea has been flying high under Bompastor’s leadership, winning every game across all competitions before the final international break of the year and holding a five-point lead at the top of the table.
At this point last season, Chelsea had dropped points against both Manchester City and Real Madrid, while suffering a shock 4-1 defeat to Arsenal. This season, despite missing key players like Sam Kerr, Mia Fishel, Sophie Ingle, and Niamh Charles due to injury, Chelsea has been in formidable form, showcasing the depth of their squad and the tactical prowess of their new coach.
2. Arsenal
Although Arsenal may not yet be where they want to be in the WSL standings, their remarkable turnaround makes them one of the most improved teams this season. After finishing in the top three and qualifying for the Champions League in the previous campaign, their start to the 2024/25 season was disappointing, with early defeats and lackluster performances under Jonas Eidevall.
Following a heavy loss to Chelsea, Eidevall resigned, and interim manager Renee Slegers took charge. Since then, Arsenal has gone unbeaten in their last seven games across all competitions, including victories over Juventus and Valerenga in the Champions League and league wins against West Ham, Brighton, and Tottenham. While Arsenal’s season is still a work in progress, their resurgence in a short time has given them a strong chance of finishing in the top three again.
1. Brighton
The biggest surprise this season has undoubtedly been Brighton. Under new manager Dario Vidosic, the Seagulls have made a remarkable leap, going from ninth in the WSL last season to a top-three position at the start of December. Their summer recruitment, which included the signings of experienced players like Fran Kirby, Nikita Parris, and Kiko Seike, has paid off, and the team has displayed solid performances throughout the campaign.
Brighton’s only significant defeats have come against Arsenal and Manchester City, but otherwise, they’ve been impressive. If they can maintain their form through the second half of the season, they could finish as the best of the rest outside the traditional top four, and perhaps even challenge for a top-three finish. Given their pre-season expectations of being relegation contenders, Brighton’s progress has been nothing short of spectacular.
These teams have made significant strides this season, and if they continue their impressive form, they could reshape the WSL’s competitive landscape for years to come.
Oh wow, Chelsea is apparently ‘improving’ even tho they already dominated the league like a kid taking candy from a baby. I mean, can we get real for a second? They lost their manager and somehow got better? Is this magic or just everyone else being terrible? Must be nice to have a five-point lead while other teams are just tripping over their shoelaces. Can’t wait to see them try to maintain that when the pressure really hits! LOL.
Arsenal’s turnaround is so dramatic it should get its own reality TV show. Seriously, how do you go from being a total disaster to unbeaten in seven games? Like, did they finally figure out how to kick the ball straight? Must’ve been tough for Eidevall watching his team flounder around like fish out of water before he had to bail. Now they’re suddenly winning against teams like Juventus. What’s next, winning the lottery? Ha!
Brighton is just full of surprises this season, huh? Going from ninth place to top three—it’s almost like they found some secret sauce in their locker room! Did someone sprinkle magic fairy dust on them or what? Their new manager must be some sort of wizard because who knew signing players would actually help them win games? It’s not rocket science! Let’s see if they can keep it up or if they’ll crash and burn like a firework gone wrong!
So Chelsea has improved after losing their long-time coach, huh? What do you guys think they’re sipping on during halftime—some kind of performance-enhancing smoothie? I guess every team needs an excuse for why they’re not winning. And oh look, they’ve been winning despite key players being injured; what are the odds?! Meanwhile, every other team is just trying not to trip over their own feet. Maybe Chelsea should just loan out their players since apparently anyone can score goals now.
‘Depth of squad’ sounds fancy and all, but let’s be honest here: it really means having backups that are only slightly less useless than the starters! This whole ‘new coach’ thing must’ve come with some sort of cheat code because it’s really hard to believe they went from zero to hero in such little time. What’s next—a motivational speech from Tony Robbins?
‘Top flight,’ ‘impressive,’ ‘remarkable leap’—are we seriously talking about soccer or writing an ad for motivational posters? Brighton’s climb is cute and all, but let’s not pretend that being better than awful means you’re actually good! Just wait until they face real competition; it’s gonna be adorable watching them struggle again.
‘Reshaping the WSL’? More like reshaping our expectations because clearly anything can happen when teams remember how to kick a ball! This season’s turning into a circus act where every game feels like watching clowns juggle chainsaws—exciting until someone inevitably gets hurt! Can’t wait for the drama; this rollercoaster ride is way more entertaining than my Netflix shows right now!