The Eagles’ return to the Women's Championship looks a likely prospect, but the question is: how did it come to this?
The South London side sit bottom of the WSL table with just nine points from 16 games since gaining promotion.
The Eagles’ most recent result was just their second win of their WSL campaign, following a crucial 3-1 victory over fellow relegation rivals Aston Villa. The Villains are now only a point ahead of Palace, so there is a narrow light at the end of the tunnel.
Narrow seems the apt choice of expression, as Villa hold the superior goal difference of -16 to -25, and the more gifted of squads.
Each of the remaining six games will be a final for the South London side, presenting them the gift of an opportunity to secure vital points for survival.
Crystal Palace’s upcoming WSL fixtures:
Saturday 22nd March | Everton (A) |
Sunday 30th March | Arsenal (H) |
Sunday 20th April | Chelsea (A) |
Sunday 27th April | West Ham (H) |
Sunday 4th May | Leicester City (H) |
Saturday 10th May | Manchester City (A) |
Leif Smerud’s side will face three teams from the top four, all of whom will be fiercely competing to finish third and above for Champions League spots.
Therefore, Palace will surely set their sights upon securing consecutive home victories against West Ham and Leicester City across April and May.
Defensive Duties
Smerud has only been in charge for three matches, with two narrow 1-0 defeats and a 3-1 win over Aston Villa demonstrating that the Eagles are perhaps turning a corner.
Prior to the victory at Borough Sports Ground, Palace suffered just a 1-0 defeat to a formidable Chelsea side in the FA Cup quarterfinals.
Palace demonstrated defensive resilience throughout the match, keeping a wasteful Chelsea at bay.
The Eagles’ defence has undeniably been one of their major pitfalls this season. Despite employing a concentrated backline of five or four players, the side have failed to record a clean sheet in any of their 16 WSL matches, conceding the highest number of goals (40) in the WSL this season.
This means that on average the opposition converts almost three goals per match, arguably making the role of Palace’s forwards somewhat futile.
This frequent joy in front of goal, married with the antithesis for Palace’s forwards, also caused the then-Palace manager Laura Kaminski to be under pressure.
Crystal Palace eventually sacked the 37-year-old on February 28, with the decision being described as “extremely difficult” by the chairman, Steve Parish.
To Remain or Not To Remain? That is the Question.
Kaminski had overseen the South London side since her arrival in July 2023, securing the Eagles promotion to the WSL in her first season.
However, in the top flight, Kaminski just couldn’t elevate her side to the standards required to compete against the other WSL outfits.
At the beginning of February, Kaminski spoke to BBC Sport about her side’s struggles, admitting: “When you are not getting better- or there are not difficult days- you are not working at the right level.
“It’s a bit gruelling while it’s happening in the moment”.
While it is a manager’s duty to direct their side, the concession of 40 goals and a response of just 18 converted demonstrates Kaminski’s players have struggled to work “at the right level”.
Therefore, the struggles of Kaminski arguably reflect those of her players quite aptly, which is that the quality and fierce competition within the league makes it difficult to stake a claim to remain.
If Palace are to be relegated, it would not be a dissimilar situation to Bristol City’s.
The Robins gained promotion to the WSL for the 23/24 season, however severely struggled to compete across the 22 fixtures. Bristol City concluded the campaign on a dismal six points, returning straight back to the Championship.
With these two situations in mind, is the gap between the WSL and the Championship hindering new sides from remaining in the top flight?
On the Attack
Each WSL side tends to have a star player they can rely upon for goals, such as Elisabeth Terland and Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw for the respective Manchester rivals.
Or conversely, a share of regular contributors like Caldentey, Russo and various defenders for the free-flowing Arsenal.
Palace’s hero in their 23/24 Championship title charge was Elise Hughes, with the Welsh international scoring 16 goals across 21 matches in the competition.
However, due to a rupture of her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in April 2024, Hughes is yet to make her first start in the WSL this season.
Having recently made five consecutive appearances from the bench, her name may soon feature in the starting XI.
Meanwhile, Katie Stengel, Annabel Blanchard and Ashleigh Weerden have predominantly been the forwards to replace Hughes.
None have hit the ground running this season, with Blanchard contributing the most with three goals and three assists in 14 appearances.
The young two-footed forward can, and has been, played in multiple forward positions alongside her more trademark No.10 role.
Meanwhile, Stengel and Weerden scored on Sunday for the Eagles, something Palace will hope they can now continue throughout the run-in.
Absentees and Winter Arrivals
Palace have been struck by injuries like other sides such as Aston Villa and Leicester, with their Captain Aimee Everett and centre-back Haley Nolan suffering long-term injuries in February.
Everett has been ruled out for the season following surgery on her foot, while Nolan could be back in April following recovery from a hamstring injury.
Their midfield skipper will certainly be a big miss on and off the field, but will surely still give her input from the sidelines to keep the side on course to evade relegation.
The winter transfer window signings have certainly offered some positive signs for the Eagles, while they adapt to life without Everett and Nolan.
Recent arrivals Clarissa Larisey and Aniek Nouwen impressed against Villa, with the former causing havoc in the Villains box in the match’s first half.
It was just Larisey’s second appearance for the club, with the Canadian forward hopefully looking to provide a new dimension to Palace’s attacks.
Nouwen made her impact from centre-back, scoring on her debut after joining the side on loan from Chelsea in January.
Like Hughes, Nouwen suffered an ACL injury which had kept her sidelined in an arduous road to recovery since December 2023. However, the 26-year-old is now ready and raring to feature often for the Eagles.
Therefore, the new signings may prove vital in Palace’s bid for survival, alongside the highly anticipated return of prolific striker Hughes.
So, despite a testing time in the WSL, Smerud’s side may yet be rejoining the Championship. The Eagles will surely do everything they can in the remaining months to combat this quite likely outcome…
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