In a historic moment for Man City, Man United and women’s football in general, both of this year’s WSL Manchester derbies will be held at the Etihad Stadium and Old Trafford, respectively.
This isn’t just the first occasion that both derby fixtures will be played at each of the club’s main stadiums, but also the first time in history that United will have ever hosted a Women’s Super League derby at the Theatre of Dreams.
While this will be the second year running that City has held the derby over at the Etihad and not at the adjacent Academy Stadium, it marks just the fourth game to have ever been held in front of fans at Man United’s home ground since the women’s team restarted in 2018.
The female Red Devils play the majority of their games at Leigh Sports Village but with women’s football bigger than even both in the UK and globally, not to mention Marc Skinner’s side going so close to the title last season, it’s a better time than ever to play the derby in front of as many fans as possible.
👀 For the first time ever…
The Manchester derby comes to Old Trafford in 2023/24! ⚔️#MUWomen || #WSL
A historic match is coming in just a few months’ time.
More than 60,000 supporters bought tickets for the two games held at Old Trafford last year and both clubs will be hoping to break attendance figures this season, with a club record of 44,259 fans also turning up to watch the most recent meeting between the two at the Etihad.
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The last match between the two ended in a 1-1 draw in December and Man United Women’s last home derby saw a record crowd of 7,864 turn up to see the Reds get one over on the Blues at Leigh Sports Village, winning in a 2-1 blockbuster to keep their title hopes alive on the final day.
Both sides ultimately ended up missing out on the WSL trophy last season after a tightly-contested campaign, with United finishing just two points behind champions Chelsea who lifted their sixth title, the most of any team since the league began in 2010.
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After both teams went so close in the last campaign, you can expect the stadiums to be packed out and even greater attendances all season long, with the first round of fixtures getting underway on 1 October.
Speaking on the announcement, Skinner said, “These fixtures represent one of the biggest rivalries in world football and it is fitting that both games will take place in stadiums that provide more fans with the opportunity to attend and support us…
“Women’s football is again capturing the nation and playing these matches at grounds like Old Trafford and the Etihad can only add to the ever-increasing profile of the club, the WSL and the women’s game in general.”
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As for his opposite number, head coach Gareth Taylor said: “It’s fantastic news that we’ll be returning to the Etihad Stadium once again this coming season… We’ve seen so many new fans attending our games over the past year, and it will be brilliant to hopefully see many more joining us next March.”
The first WSL Manchester derby will be held at Old Trafford on Sunday, 19 November and the reverse fixture at the Etihad will take place on Sunday, 24 March 2024. Although City are yet to announce their full list of prices, United fans can secure their derby day seats now from just £15. The question is, can the two Manc teams push each other even closer to the title this season?
Featured Image — Manchester United/Manchester City
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Pep Guardiola delivers gutting news as Man City are hit with Erling Haaland injury blow
Danny Jones
Pep Guardiola has passed on some gutting fitness news for Manchester City fans as star striker Erling Haaland is confirmed to be injured for several weeks and could even miss the rest of the Premier League season.
The title might be out of reach this year, and the Champions League knockout against Real Madrid was definitely hard for Blues to take, but with Man City into the semi-finals of the FA Cup, there’s still a very strong chance they could end 2024/25 with a piece of silverware.
However, they’ll have to make it through another two massive rounds at Wembley and seemingly the remainder of the season without Haaland and his goals, as the Catalan coach revealed that the club expects him to be out injured for “six to seven weeks.”
Not exactly how City fans would have wanted to see the rest of an already frustrating season play out.
🗣️ "We don't have another player with his skills."
Relaying diagnosis from the medical team, Pep said the hope is that the big Norwegian number nine could be back for the very tail end of the campaign, but at the very least, he “will be ready for the [FIFA Club] World Cup.”
He went on to add that “these kinds of things happen” and that he feels “sorry” for all of the other injuries that have befell his squad up till now, adding that they can only hope for a speedy recovery and for him to return as soon as possible.
The 24-year-old hasn’t had too many big injury problems in his career thus far, although his longest spell on the sidelines did come at the end of 2023 when a stress fracture kept him out until the new year.
This time around, Haaland suffered an injury to his ankle during the City’s FA Cup win over Bournemouth on Sunday following a challenge from defensive midfielder Lewis Cook.
He was forced in the second half and was seen leaving the Vitality Stadium on crutches after the game.
Erling Haaland seen leaving Bournemouth in a protective boot and crutches. 🤕
Having led the golden boot race for a good chunk of the season – as he’s become accustomed too since he arrived in England – City‘s sub-optimal season has seen him slink into second behind high-flying Mo Salah on 27, but he still has a couple dozen goals and a trio of assists to show for it.
Speaking of Salah, the soon-to-leave ‘Egyptian King’ has been the talisman for Liverpool this season, and his contributions could see them lift the trophy in Arne Slot’s first season as early as 13 April, depending on how fellow title rivals Arsenal fare in their next two matches.
As for how City round out their domestic campaign, reclaiming the FA Cup after last year’s derby disappointment looks like the main goal.
You can watch Pep Guardiola’s press conference ahead of the game against Leicester City at 19:45pm tomorrow (Wednesday, 2 April) in full HERE.
Masters Football isn’t just back – it’s coming to Manchester
Danny Jones
The much-loved Masters Football format made its glorious comeback in 2022, and since then, it’s been steadily rebuilding an audience of passionate fans, plenty of whom you’ll find here in the sporting city of Manchester – so it’s a good job the national tournament is heading our way.
That’s right, the official English Masters Football competition is coming to 0161 later this year and will be bringing a host of legendary North West talent from years gone by to take part.
Although the full squads and their team captains have yet to be announced, former professionals from Manchester United, Man City, Liverpool, Everton, and more will be lacing back up their boots.
Manchester Masters Football 2025 lands at the equally iconic AO Arena this September.
Credit: Publicity Pictures (supplied)
For anyone unfamiliar with Masters Football, which developed a die-hard following when it first ran between 2000 and 2011, is shorter, indoor-only six-a-side footy tournament similar to futsal.
Each team will feature eight retired players, and the games unfold in a round-robin format, with each match consisting of two eight-minute halves, meaning that both sides have a little over a quarter of an hour to score enough to make it past the other.
In addition to the quicker matches, they will battle it out on a 60m x 30m pitch – the same size of an international ice hockey rink – and whoever makes it through with the highest points will battle it out in a grand final to claim the Manchester Masters title.
As you can see, players set to star this year include ex-United and City defenders Wes Brown and Joleon Lescott, as well as Liverpool and Everton strikers Djibril Cisse and Yakubu Ayegbeni.
You can see some of the best moments from the year it officially returned to the UK down below:
The Manchester edition of the 2025 English Masters Football Tournament Series arrives at the AO Arena on Friday, 5 September.
Doors will open to the venue from 6pm, with the first match kicking off at 7pm, so you better have drinks and snacks in time for bums to hit seats.
As for tickets, there’ll be two chances at early access, first for Three+ mobile members at 10am on Wednesday, 2 April and then via the venue’s presale window at the same time the following day. General admission tickets will be made available, also from 10am, the following Saturday, 5 April.
Danny Jones -
7th August 2023 
