Women’s Super League Q&A: football writer Suzanne Wrack answers your questions now

The WSL season kicks off tonight and the Guardian’s women’s football writer Suzanne Wrack is here now answering your questions – from what to expect from London City Lionesses after their signing spree to whether Manchester City can go back to back. Ask a question: log in or sign up here . Challengingviews asks: Would the real test of competitiveness this season be if the clubs from fourth to ninth can get results against the top three? For too many years City and Chelsea and Arsenal have only really had to worry about each other. Suzanne: This is what I think is really exciting this season. Each year, while you haven’t necessarily been able to predict exactly which of Arsenal, City or Chelsea will win the title, you could predict that the only points they would drop would be against each other, at least 99% of the time. This season, I think the likelihood of those teams dropping points to some of those in the chasing pack on a more frequent basis is much higher. We saw Brighton, Tottenham, London City Lionesses, Aston Villa, Liverpool and Manchester United all take points off the top three across the course of last season and I think that trend will continue. How the top three handle that and how those challenging for the ‘best of the rest’ mantle capitalise is going to be super interesting. Suzanne: I’ve predicted City to retain their title, though don’t get too excited as my predictions are notoriously bad. A lot think having Champions League football will stretch the squad but I think City have the depth to cope. The change to the League Cup, meaning UWCL teams will not take part, also alleviates the issue a little, while obviously the UWCL matches are few levels up from the League Cup intensity wise. Where are City vulnerable? I think an injury to any more key players beyond Miedema could cause problems, particularly to Bunny Shaw, Alex Greenwood or Lauren Hemp. For me, the centre-back options are a little lacking, particularly with Jade Rose out. City are in Pot 3 of the Champions League draw because their Uefa coefficient isn’t high enough. They weren’t in European competition last season and while they reached the quarter-final stage the preceding year, they failed to qualify for the 2023-24 edition and failed to escape the qualifying rounds in the two years prior to that. The good news is that despite being in Pot 3, the draw has been pretty kind to them. Arsenal arguably have a tougher draw from Pot 1. Continue reading...