Matildas Abroad Preview: Aussie defenders battle across Scandinavia

A handful of Aussies will face one another in this weekend's action, with four Commonwealth Bank Matildas' defenders going head-to-head in Sweden and Denmark. 

After Fortuna Hjørring recorded their first loss of the season last weekend, they take on seventh-placed AGF as they look to keep in touch with first-placed HB Køge. While BK Häcken were the first team to beat ladder leaders FC Rosengård last weekend and look to take this momentum into the final stages of the Damallsvenskan season. 

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After the first loss in history to West Ham United last weekend, Manchester City will be looking to bounce back when they take on rivals Manchester United in a sold-out derby.

Alanna Kennedy was on the bench for City in their loss to West Ham but did not make an appearance for Gareth Taylor's side, while fellow Commonwealth Bank Matilda Hayley Raso has been sidelined due to a shoulder injury.

City's back-to-back defeats at the hands of West Ham and Arsenal sees them sit in ninth place on the ladder, having not scored a goal in their last two outings but leaking seven in the process. 

The game kicks off on Saturday at 11:30 pm (AEST). 

A hard-fought midweek UWCL clash against Wolfsburg saw Chelsea collect one point in their 3-3 all draw, with some lapses in defense gifting Wolfsburg some easy goals.

Emma Hayes' side will be looking to improve their communication and defending when they welcome Leciester City, who are newly promoted and looking for their first win in the WSL.

Sam Kerr and Fran Kirby celebrating a goal against Everton. (Photo: GettyImages)
Sam Kerr and Fran Kirby celebrating a goal against Everton. (Photo: GettyImages)

Sam Kerr has scored seven goals in Chelsea's last five games across all competitions, and will be looking to get things underway early on Sunday night. 

With Kerr sitting at the top of the golden boot race, and her blues counterpart Fran Kirby at the top of the assists table, this fixture promises goals. 

The game kicks off on Sunday at 10:30 pm (AEST). 

Second-placed Tottenham Hotspur are looking to make it five wins in a row when they travel to take on Brighton & Hove Albion. Kyah Simon has only the one appearance in Spurs colours, after an injury late in the game against Manchester City has seen her sidelined. 

The game kicks off on Monday at 12:00 am (AEST).

Another Aussie player who missed out on last weekend's action due to injury was Aston Villa's Emily Gielnik. After netting Villa's only goal against Brighton, Gielnik did not appear in her side's 4-0 loss to Arsenal.

Villa will be hoping Gielnik is fit to play as they take on last placed Reading, who are goalless in their first four games of the season. 

The game kicks off on Monday at 12:00 am (AEST).

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Mackenzie Arnold's goalkeeping heroics against Manchester City last weekend ensured West Ham recorded their first win against City, and she will be looking to replicate this when West Ham welcome a winless Birmingham City. 

Tameka Yallop has impressed since joining the Hammers, scoring a brace on debut and playing the entire match against City. 

Mackenzie Arnold celebrates West Ham's 2-0 win. (Photo: GettyImages)
Mackenzie Arnold celebrates West Ham's 2-0 win. (Photo: GettyImages)

The Hammers go into the match looking to secure their third straight win, they take on a side that has only scored one goal in their first four games. 

The game kicks off on Monday at 1:00 am (AEST).

The last game of the WSL for the weekend will see Arsenal welcome Everton, the Gunners are looking to bounce back after a defeat to Barcelona during the week in the UWCL. 

The Gunners sit at the top of the table with four wins to start the season, Steph Catley has featured in all four wins for Arsenal.

The head-to-head between the two sides heavily favours Arsenal, with the Gunners winning 12 out of 13 of the games between the two sides.

Caitlin Foord is still in search of her first WSL goal of the season, missing Arsenal's first two wins to Chelsea and Reading through injury, while Lydia Williams is yet to feature so far in the WSL this season, however, with a quick turnaround after their UWCL game on Wednesday, coach Jonas Eidevall may need to rotate his squad. 

The game kicks off on Monday at 1:00 am (AEST).

Moving over to Sweden, Teagan Micah and Charli Grant's FC Rosengård will be looking to bounce back from their first loss of the season when they take on Linköping. 

Teagan Micah warming up for FC Rosengård (Source: @fcrosengard Instagram)
Teagan Micah warming up for FC Rosengård (Source: @fcrosengard Instagram)

With BK Häcken sitting just three points behind them and only four games left of the season, a win for Rosengård against Linköping will be necessary to stay at the top of the table. 

The game kicks off on Saturday at 11:00 pm (AEST).

Dylan Holmes' BK Häcken will be looking to go top of the table when they take on Clare Polkinghorne's Vittsjö GIK. Holmes featured in Häcken's 3-0 loss to Lyon in the UWCL throughout the week, however, the Swedish side looked dangerous at times and troubled the French side. 

Polkinghorne's Vittsjö are four games without defeat and sit in sixth spot, with a chance to still clinch the third UWCL spot for next season, sitting only seven points behind the current third place. 

The game kicks off on Sunday at 12:00 am (AEST).

Over in Denmark, Jenna McCormick's AGF take on a plethora of Aussies when they welcome Fortuna Hjørring. Hjørring recorded their first loss of the season last weekend when HB Køge walked away 4-0 winners. 

Jenna McCormick for AGF Fodbold (Source: @AGFFodbold Twitter)
Jenna McCormick for AGF Fodbold (Source: @AGFFodbold Twitter)

Angela Beard, Indiah-Paige Riley and Alex Huynh all started for Hjørring in the loss, while Clare Wheeler remained on the bench. 

The game kicks off on Sunday at 10:00 pm (AEST).

In the Netherlands, Amy Harrison's PSV welcomes SC Heerenveen for their fifth match of the season.

After recording their first loss of the season in their last game with a 1-0 loss to Den Hagg, PSV will be looking to get back to their winning ways. 

The game kicks off on Saturday at 4:30 am (AEST). 

Our final destination takes us to Japan, with Alex Chidiac's JEF United still in search of their first win in the WE League. They take on third-place MyNavi Sendai, Chidiac has featured in all three of the last games for JEF.

The game kicks off on Saturday at 3:00 pm  (AEST).