Women’s Super League 2025-26 Previews No 7: Liverpool

Guardian writers’ predicted position: 9th (NB: this is not needfully Tom Garry’s prediction but nan mean of our writers’ tips)

Last season’s position: 7th

Prospects

Liverpool are entering a caller era aft choosing Gareth Taylor arsenic their caput coach successful August, hoping he will bring occurrence successful nan agelong word and thief build an personality for really they want to play. The erstwhile Manchester City caput coach’s assignment came 162 days aft Liverpool’s erstwhile head Matt Beard left, aft an extended recruitment process than nan Guardian understands took overmuch longer than accustomed because of a clause pinch Taylor’s erstwhile contract, aft Taylor had been identified earlier successful nan summertime arsenic nan No 1 target. It was nan first awesome coaching assignment overseen by nan managing director, Andy O’Boyle, who arrived successful April, replacing Russ Fraser.

After an unexpected fourth-placed decorativeness successful 2024, Liverpool ended past word seventh and they are hoping to amended connected that and commencement building towards challenging for trophies again aft making their fans hold for occurrence for acold excessively long; they person not achieved a top-three decorativeness since winning back-to-back WSL titles successful 2013 and 2014. Liverpool are 1 of only 4 clubs to person won nan WSL but complete nan past decade location person been large mobility marks astir nan wider club’s ambition for nan women’s team, who person been operating pinch a acold smaller fund than nan apical sides.

This summertime they sold Olivia Smith for a past world-record interest of £1m, breaking a historical barrier, but it remains to beryllium seen really they intend to walk that money, making predictions difficult astir their run until nan transportation model closes connected Thursday. They are yet to switch Smith pinch a connection signing.

The manager

Taylor, nan erstwhile Wales, Nottingham Forest and Sheffield United player, spent 5 years astatine City wherever he came mighty adjacent to a convention title, missing retired connected extremity quality successful nan 2023-24 campaign. In different second-placed decorativeness successful 2020-21, his broadside mislaid 1 convention game. He won an FA Cup and a League Cup, and Liverpool are understood to person admired his possession-based style. Can he replicate that successfully pinch a squad not blessed pinch nan aforesaid world-class talent?

Olivia Smith has departed for a interest of £1m. Photograph: Nick Taylor/Liverpool FC/Getty Images

Off-field picture

Liverpool person announced a trio of convention fixtures that will beryllium staged astatine Anfield, including their season-opening section derby against Everton connected 7 September, and nan remainder of their location matches will beryllium played astatine their regular location successful St Helens, which offers a bully level of accommodation for their fans compared pinch galore others successful nan WSL. The players person a top-class training situation astatine Melwood but nan fans will wantFenway Sports Group to put much successful nan squad aft years of comparatively frugal spending has near them miles down clubs specified arsenic Arsenal and Chelsea.

Star signing

Could nan reply alteration earlier nan model shuts? So far, Liverpool’s champion move has been to make nan indebtedness of nan Scotland midfielder Sam Kerr a imperishable transportation from Bayern Munich, and they person besides signed nan Rangers academy postgraduate Kirsty Maclean and picked up 2 astute free signings successful nan Wales defender Lily Woodham – who is apt to capable nan spread connected nan near created by nan exit of Hinds – and nan German goalkeeper Rafaela Borggräfe. But nary of those person made a sizeable dent into nan £1m received for nan waste of Smith.

Stepping up

Mia Enderby, often awesome for England’s younker teams passim nan property groups, is 1 of Liverpool’s brightest young prospects and, astatine nan property of 20, this could beryllium nan play erstwhile she goes from being a subordinate pinch imaginable to being a prima of nan present. In July nan erstwhile Sheffield United guardant signed a caller statement and Liverpool could surely use from much goals: they were nan third-lowest scorers successful nan WSL past play and they person not had a subordinate scope a double-figure goals tally successful nan apical section since Courtney Sweetman-Kirk deed 10 successful 2018-19.

Ceri Holland was successful nan Wales squad astatine Euro 2025. Photograph: Nick Potts/PA

It was a bully summertime for …

Gemma Evans and Ceri Holland were portion of nan Wales squad that contested their first awesome women’s world tournament, but location are nary elder England players successful nan Liverpool squad. It was a astonishment that nan guardant Sophie Roman Haug was near retired of nan Norway squad for nan Euros and she could person a constituent to beryllium this season. The immense mostly of nan Liverpool squad were capable to person a summertime break for rest, betterment and past a afloat pre-season, which could use them.

Main inaugural to pull much fans

A large displacement complete nan past six months has been an effort to alteration nan playing style and make nan team’s strategies perchance pull much fans done nan turnstiles; nan largest constituent of that hinged connected nan recruitment of a caller caput coach, truthful a batch rests connected nan occurrence of Taylor and his coaching staff. The nine person chosen their location convention fixture against Everton, Manchester City and Arsenal to beryllium staged astatine Anfield.