City Beaten By Man Utd In WSL Opener

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City Beaten By Man Utd In WSL Opener

The 2025/26 WSL season started in defeat for LCFC Women, losing 4-0 to Manchester United at Leigh Sports Village on Sunday afternoon.

2025-09-07T14:25+01:00

by Matthew Temple

Published

07 Sep, 2025

from Leigh Sports Village

City Beaten By Man Utd In WSL Opener

The 2025/26 WSL season started in defeat for LCFC Women, losing 4-0 to Manchester United at Leigh Sports Village on Sunday afternoon.

Matthew Temple

2025-09-07T14:25+01:00

City Beaten By Man Utd In WSL Opener

The 2025/26 WSL season started in defeat for LCFC Women, losing 4-0 to Manchester United at Leigh Sports Village on Sunday afternoon.

Matthew Temple

2025-09-07T14:25+01:00

City Beaten By Man Utd In WSL Opener

The 2025/26 WSL season started in defeat for LCFC Women, losing 4-0 to Manchester United at Leigh Sports Village on Sunday afternoon.

Matthew Temple

2025-09-07T14:25+01:00

City Beaten By Man Utd In WSL Opener

The 2025/26 WSL season started in defeat for LCFC Women, losing 4-0 to Manchester United at Leigh Sports Village on Sunday afternoon.

Matthew Temple

2025-09-07T14:25+01:00

First half goals from Ella Toone and Elisabeth Terland gave the Red Devils a strong first half lead, who saw out the game, thanks to a second half brace from Melvine Malard, against a Leicester side flooded with new faces following a busy Transfer Deadline Day, and coached by former West Ham United Assistant Manager, Rick Passmoor.

Live on Sky Sports for Sunday's early kick-off, City had to deal with a fierce opponent and challenging weather conditions as the heavens opened midway through the first half, and didn't stop until after the final whistle.

A quick start from the home side

Leicester lost out on the first day of the season.

Janina Leitzig had her work cut out against a side keen to get on the front foot early, and after some initial good stops from the German 'keeper, the hosts broke our backline when Lioness Toone fired a first into the bottom corner just 13 minutes in.

The Manchester outfit notched a second through Elisabeth Terland, giving them a stronghold in the game at the break, which only grew in the second period after a brace from French forward Melvine Malard.

Plenty of City debuts

Emily van Egmond was one of four City debutants.

We announced six new additions to our squad ahead of Thursday's 11pm transfer deadline, with four of them coming through the doors hours before, but the majority were straight into action at Leigh Sports Village.

Celeste Boureille and Emily van Egmond made the starting line-up while Olivia McLoughlin and Heather Payne came on in the second period, notching their first appearances in Leicester blue.

Youngster Cecily Wellesley-Smith, who has joined us on a season-long loan from Arsenal, was an unused substitute alongside fellow Deadline Day signing Rosella Ayane.

Learning from defeat

Battling in the elements.

It was a tough day at the office for the Foxes, made no easier by the horrendous weather conditions that plagued the majority of the match just outside of Manchester.

Lining up with new faces, recent Academy graduates and long-term injury victims in the squad, it will be an important day of reflection for the team, as we quickly look ahead to our first WSL home league clash of the season, against Liverpool next Sunday (12pm GMT kick-off).

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