Clare Hunt and Sarah Hunter will face off in a crucial Paris Derby in France, while 'Ausenal' will face arch-rivals Tottenham at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday.
Read how to catch all of the Matildas Abroad action below.
England
Arsenal will play their second North London Derby in a week, as they take on arch-rivals Tottenham on Saturday, 11pm AEDT. It will be the third time the derby has been hosted at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Steph Catley and Caitlin Foord are expected to start for Arsenal, while Kyra Cooney-Cross’ eye-catching performance in the Conti Cup midweek may be enough to earn her fourth WSL start.
Teagan Micah’s Liverpool travel to Manchester United on Sunday, 11.15pm AEDT. A win for the Reds will see them equal on points with United, who are sitting in fourth place. Micah has performed well for Liverpool since winning her spot as first-choice keeper – her save percentage currently sitting at 80% - and she will hope to continue that against the Red Devils.
It will be Aussie v Aussie on Monday, 12am AEDT as Clare Wheeler’s Everton host Alanna Kennedy and Mary Fowler’s Manchester City. It will be a stern test for Everton, but they are coming off a much-needed win and will back themselves to find the back of the net. Wheeler has been consistently starting for Everton this season and will likely continue in this match. Kennedy has likewise been ever-present for City, while Fowler has been in and out of a star-studded attack.
Sam Kerr’s Chelsea will hope to bounce back after a heavy defeat to Arsenal last week, as they travel to take on Bristol City on Monday, 1am AEDT. On paper, this is a heavy mismatch but Bristol has proven themselves capable of an upset this season and they will fight hard to get a result from the match. Kerr is expected to be available from the start for Chelsea.
Leicester City take on West Ham on Monday, 2am AEDT. The Hammers will be desperate to get a result that will take them off the bottom of the table and out of the relegation zone, but it will be no easy feat against Leicester. Courtney Nevin has been a consistent starter for the Foxes, while Remy Siemsen is seeing her minutes grow after recovering from a pre-season ankle injury. There has been no update on West Ham captain Mackenzie Arnold’s fitness as yet for this fixture.
Finally, Charlie Rule’s Brighton & Hove Albion will travel to take on Aston Villa on Monday, 5.45am AEDT. Both teams will be hoping for three points to elevate them into the midtable and away from any potential relegation battle. Rule has been getting consistent minutes at right wing-back this season and the new CommBank Matilda will be hoping to continue her form against Villa.
You can catch all of the WSL action live on Optus Sport.
France
Lyon will be hoping it is business as usual as they take on Fleury on Saturday, 11.30pm AEDT. Ellie Carpenter missed their last league game after returning from Canada but played in the Champions League midweek and will look to help her side continue their perfect record this season.
The most exciting clash of the round comes in the Paris derby as second-place Paris FC take on third-place PSG. While PSG have two games in hand, arguably it is their cross-town rivals who have been the most impressive sidebar Lyon this season. Not only is it a hotly contested rivalry in its own right, but the winner will be in the hot seat to finish second behind Lyon this season.
Clare Hunt has been a consistent starter at centre-back for PSG after overcoming early injury concerns. Meanwhile, Sarah Hunter has found minutes hard to come by for Paris FC but will be hoping to be in the matchday squad for the big occasion. This game will kick off on Monday at 7:00am AEDT.
You can watch the Division 1 Féminine here.
Spain
Hayley Raso’s Real Madrid will hope to reclaim second place behind Barcelona as they take on Levante on Monday, 12am AEDT. It is a quick turnaround from their Champions League game that was played on Friday morning against Paris FC – Raso started and played almost the full match - so it is likely there will be some squad rotation. Nonetheless, the 29-year-old can expect to play some role in the team this week.
