Matildas Abroad Preview: NWSL final for Kansas; penultimate round in Sweden

The NWSL final kicks off on Saturday for Chloe Logarzo's Kansas City Current; while the penultimate round in Sweden is set to get underway. 

See where all our Matildas Abroad will be in action in our preview! 

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USA

Starting off in the NWSL, Chloe Logarzo's Kansas City Current will play in their first-ever NWSL Final when they take on the Portland Thorns at Audi Field in Washington, D.C.

Current knocked out the NWSL shield winner, OL Reign, in the semi-finals, beating the side 2-0 to book their ticket to the final. While the Thorns defeated San Diego Wave 2-1 in stoppage time to seal a spot in their third NWSL final. 


Logarzo is yet to feature for the Current this season, and at the end of the season is set to join Western United for their inaugural Liberty A-League Women's season on loan. This game will kick off on Sunday at 11:00 am AEDT

England

Kicking off in London, Sam Kerr's Chelsea will host Emily Gielnik's Aston Villa as the Blues look to build on their emphatic win in the UWCL throughout the week. 

Chelsea comes into the game with a four-game winning streak in the WSL in tow, while Villa has been narrowly beaten in their last two outings. 


Kerr had a history-making performance throughout the week with Chelsea in the UWCL, becoming the first woman to score four goals in a group-stage game in the competition. While an injury sustained on international duty will see Gielnik sidelined until the holiday period. 

This game will kick off on Monday morning at 1:00 am AEDT.

Another side that recorded a dominant win throughout the week that saw Aussies find the back of the net was Manchester City, with Mary Fowler and Hayley Raso both scoring in the Conti Cup.

Manchester City will host Liverpool as they look to record their third win of the season, after back-to-back 4-0 victories in the WSL for Gareth Taylor's side, City has refound their form after facing two defeats to start their season. 


Fowler found the back of the net twice in City's Conti Cup win, with Raso scoring and picking up an assist in the 6-0 victory. 

This game will kick off on Monday morning at 1:00 am AEDT.

Clare Wheeler's Everton will aim to record back-to-back wins when they host Manchester United. The teams were in action midweek in the Conti Cup with both games going to penalty shoot-outs, with Everton winning 4-2 over Aston Villa, however, United was handed a shock defeat by Durham, beating them 3-1.

This game will kick off on Monday morning at 1:00 am AEDT.

Last up, Caitlin Foord and Steph Catley's Arsenal will host Mackenzie Arnold's West Ham United. Arsenal will be in search of their fifth consecutive win of the season, while the Hammers come into the game off the back of two nail-biting victories. 

The last time the two sides met in the WSL, the Gunners recorded a 4-0 victory thanks to a Kim Little brace, a Beth Mead goal and an unfortunate own goal from the Hammers. 

This game will kick off on Monday morning at 5:45 am AEDT.

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France

Over in Reims, Lydia Williams' Paris Saint-Germain take on Stade Reims in the hunt for their fifth win of the season. 

Williams has only made one appearance so far in the D1 and did not feature in the matchday squad for PSG's last two outings in the UWCL.

This game will kick off on Saturday night at 11:30 pm AEDT.

Sweden

Our last stop takes us to Sweden, where the penultimate round in the Damallsvenskan will get underway. Elise Kellond-Knight, Kyra Cooney-Cross and Courtney Nevin's Hammarby will play their last home game of the season when they host KIF Örebro. 


With nine points separating Hammarby from third place, the Stockholm-based side is unable to clinch a UWCL spot for next season.

This game will kick off on Sunday morning at 12:00 am AEDT.

Meanwhile, Clare Polkinghorne, Katrina Gorry and Charli Grant's Vittsjö GIK will take on Piteå. 

Vittsjö GIK, like Hammarby, sits just outside of the top three and is unable to make a last-ditch run to clinch a spot in the UWCL next season. 

Polkinghorne was on the scoresheet in their last outing and has signed on with the club for 2023. This game will kick off on Sunday night at 11:00 pm AEDT.

Aivi Luik's BK Häcken still needs to secure their spot in the top three, with fourth place just four points behind them with two games remaining. 

A win against AIK in their second-to-last game of the season will clinch their spot in the UWCL next season. 

This game will kick off on Tuesday morning at 5:00 am AEDT

Lastly, Teagan Micah's  FC Rosengård, who have already secured the league championship, will host tenth-placed Djurgårdens. 


Rosengård made it back-to-back league titles throughout the week when it became clear that no other team could overtake the Malmö side. 

This game will kick off on Tuesday morning at 5:00 am AEDT