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Women' s Super League Five talking points as Manchester United share the goal burden

Last updated on 21 October 202221 October 2022.From the section Women's FootballManchester United have scored 10 goals and conceded none so far this WSL SeasonWomen's Super League - Liverpool v ArsenalVenue: Prenton Park Date: Sunday, 23 October Kick-off: 12:00 BSTCoverage: Watch on BBC Two, BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport website After a successful week for Arsenal and Chelsea in the Champions League, the Women's Super League returns - so what does it have it store? Can anyone stop Beth Mead? Could Pernille Harder be the key to Chelsea's season? And how many goalscorers do Manchester United have? Here are five things to look out for this weekend.

' Everything Mead touches turns to gold'

Are we now running out of superlatives for Arsenal forward Beth Mead? Having earned the Golden Boot and Player of the Tournament awards as England won the Euros this summer, the 27-year-old has continued her incredible form in the domestic season. Mead, who was runner-up to Spain's Alexia Putellas in the Ballon d'Or earlier this week by one vote, has the highest combined total of goals and assists of any player in the WSL this season - with five. In three games, she has scored three goals and provided two assists. If Liverpool hope to get anything against Mead's Arsenal on Sunday, they need to find a way of stopping her. Liverpool boss Matt Beard said: "She's firing at the minute. Everything she seems to touch at the moment turns to gold - she's in fantastic form. We have to stop the ball getting to Mead in those dangerous areas." It is not just Mead who is firing for Arsenal, who have won 11 consecutive league matches and also kept nine successive clean sheets, facing just 10 shots on target. Their 5-1 win away to Champions League holders Lyon on Wednesday was a huge statement - but boss Jonas Eidevall is keen not to dwell on it. "You have to go back to reality quickly," he said. "It was a very memorable night and a great performance but we won't be entitled to anything extra going forward." Vivianne Miedema, the WSL's all-time leading goalscorer, did not start against Lyon, so may feel she has a point to prove this weekend. "They have quality all over the pitch," said Beard. "We need to make sure we stop Arsenal a little bit deeper so they don't get into that rhythm and create chances."Can Women's Super League clubs compete with Europe's elite?

Man Utd sharing the load

Manchester United lead the WSL with three wins from three games, having scored 10 goals and conceded none. Eight different players have contributed to that goal tally and, in the absence of England's injured star striker Alessia Russo, manager Marc Skinner is pleased his side are sharing the load. "I'm really happy with the variety of people we have, the qualities they bring," he said. "What we do have now is that if we need to play direct, we have forwards who can score with aerial threat. We have the ability to run behind, we have the ability to come in front of lines to disjoint defences, we can score from set-pieces." But Skinner admits that his side are yet to be truly tested, and on Sunday they face bottom-of-the-league Leicester. "When you play against teams that only give you a few chances, that's the next test for us, being ruthless in those moments. I would like our forwards to have ownership of those big moments," he said. Ella Toone, Nikita Parris and summer signings Maya Le Tissier and Adriana Leon are among those contributing goals. But Skinner is keen for his side to not get "complacent" against teams lower down the league, with big tests to come in back-to-back games in November against Chelsea and Arsenal. "It's a good start, but that's all it is," he said.

Bedford taking positives in Foxes tough start

Leicester's lack of goals is a problem - they have found the net once in four league games this season, and that was an own goal by Tottenham's Drew Spence. But as her side prepare to face Manchester United, manager Lydia Bedford sees positive signs from a team who avoided relegation by just two points last season. "It feels different because we weren't expecting to compete with the teams in the first three games, but we're looking forward to playing them again later in the season because we've been competitive in those games," said Bedford. Leicester have now lost to Aston Villa, Everton, Tottenham and Manchester City and have managed to string together more than 10 passes in open play on just four occasions in those matches, the joint-fewest of any side, along with West Ham. But after hosting United on Sunday, Bedford's side may well see a chance to pick up points against teams just above them, in Liverpool and Reading. Reading are also without a win this season, while newly promoted Liverpool's only two league goals so far have both been penalties - although they did beat Chelsea in their opening game.

Return of Harder key for Chelsea

Following their 3-1 defeat by Chelsea last weekend, Everton boss Brian Sorensen said his side did not do enough to keep Denmark forward Pernille Harder out of the game. Harder was making her first appearance of the season after returning from injury and scored two goals to keep Chelsea level on points with United at the top.Harder scored twice on her return to the pitch against Everton With five goals and three assists in her past six WSL starts in the WSL, Harder's return could be significant for Chelsea's domestic and European hopes. Rotation will be paramount for the Blues as they continue their campaign in Europe, having beaten Paris St-Germain 1-0 in their opening Champions League game on Thursday. After that victory, Harder said: "I'm really happy to be back and be healthy with my hamstrings. I'm just glad to be on the pitch and playing some football, doing what I love, and with this team as well." With manager Emma Hayes away for a significant period, Denmark captain Harder could provide invaluable leadership on and off the pitch.

Time to build some momentum

After the opening weekend of fixtures was postponed as a mark of respect following the death of the Queen, the majority of the WSL have played three games, with some having played four. An international break interrupted the season's flow after that - something Tottenham boss Rehanne Skinner suggested has made an impact. "With the international breaks, they are quite frequent and it just disrupts the flow that you're able to get," she said. Manchester City boss Gareth Taylor has also previously discussed the difficulty of the league schedule in gathering momentum. But WSL teams now have another three rounds of games before the next international break and will look to this weekend to try to begin to string some results together.

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