Crystal Palace reignited the Barclays WSL relegation battle with a courageous 3-1 victory at home over Aston Villa. Goals from Aniek Nouwen, Ashleigh Weerden and Katie Stengel drew the Eagles within a point of 11th-placed Villa. Lucy Parker scored the consolation for the visitors.
The Action
All eyes were on Sutton United on Sunday with an encounter that could have huge ramifications on the relegation battle. Crystal Palace have propped up the table for most of the season and it felt like this was a certain must-win for the Eagles. Victory and they would move within a point of 11th-placed Aston Villa who have been struggling for form under new manager Natalia Arroyo.
Leif Smerud had a thin squad to choose from ahead of kick off. There was no Lexi Potter or Josie Green involved, two of the stalwarts of their season to date. It meant there was a rare start for Chloe Arthur at the heart of midfield while Molly-Mae Sharpe continued in her new-found role at right back. There was a debut for Nouwen at the heart of the defence. The Dutch defender arrived on loan from Chelsea over the winter as she continues her recovery from an ACL injury.
Arroyo had rested Rachel Daly in the FA Cup quarter-final encounter with Manchester City last week but the Villa captain returned to the starting 11 as did Kirsty Hanson who was making her 100th Barclays WSL appearance. Ebony Salmon retained her role alongside Daly up front.
It was Villa who made the brighter start controlling possession and creating opportunities. None of them were clear-cut, however, and all too often they were rushed and from distance. This was the story of their afternoon – they created 19 chances in total but registered only three on target.
It was the Eagles who created the first real opportunity of note and it eventually led to the opener. Dangerous on the transition, Stengel drove into the box before forcing Sabrina D’Angelo to tip her shot behind. They got the breakthrough from the subsequent corner when Nouwen rose to meet Lily Woodham’s delivery and directed a looping header home, the helpless Miri Taylor only able to head it off the underside of the bar as an attempted clearance. It was a sweet moment for the Palace defender who was making her first appearance on a pitch for 470 days. They should have had a second just before the break when Clarissa Larisey fired into the side-netting.
Palace started the second half brightly, stretching Villa’s backline. They doubled their lead in the 53rd minute thanks to a brilliant finish from Weerden.
It was a goal that force Villa manager Arroyo into action – a quadruple change that saw Missy-Bo Kearns, Jordan Nobbs, Gabi Nunes and Danielle Turner come off the bench to try and make an impact. They improved significantly in terms of the pressure they were able to apply and will count themselves unlucky that Nobbs’ effort from range clipped the woodwork while Woodham was forced to make a last-ditch clearance off the line. With five minutes to play, they gave themselves hope. Kearns’ corner dropped in the box for Parker who adjusted her body well to hook it home.
The visitors upped the pressure, desperate for an equaliser but it was the Eagles who were able to give themselves a cushion deep into injury time. It will be one D’Angelo will not want to see again! In her attempt to help push Villa forward, she broke to the halfway line to win the ball before inexplicably sending a pass backwards. Stengel pounced and broke towards goal before dispatching her shot into the empty net, the Villa keeper following desperately in her wake.
Joyous scenes ensued on the final whistle as Palace celebrated jubilantly in front of their home fans. It was their first home win of the season and everyone understood its importance.
Stand Out Moment
Crystal Palace’s second goal just after the break came at the perfect time to give the Eagles a cushion in the game. From the energy of Stengel to win the ball back to the directness of Weerden, it was a classic counter-attacking goal. Add to that the superb finish from the Dutch international to fire it past the helpless D’Angelo.
Soaring past the keeper 🦅
Precision finishing from @cpfc_w‘s Ashleigh Weerden 📐#BarclaysWSL pic.twitter.com/5oEbQbHxJl
— Barclays Women’s Super League (@BarclaysWSL) March 16, 2025
Stand Out Performance
It is hard to find fault with any members of the Crystal Palace team but the stand-out had to be the performance of Katie Stengel. The 33-year-old was at her very best on Sunday with a display that set the tone for her entire team. The intensity of her press, her vision going forward and her ability to break up Villa’s possession were all key in the Eagles’ success. Her instinctive shot led to the corner for Nouwen’s opener; she also got an important flick on the delivery to set up the Dutch defender. She was equally as involved in Palace’s second, nicking the ball in the midfield before setting up Weerden. She capped off her afternoon with a goal of her own deep into injury team, reading D’Angelo’s poor back pass to break and score.
Quote of the Day
“It felt so good. Everything just came together. I can’t describe it in one word.I have been waiting for this a long, long time. Scoring a goal and we get the win, it’s amazing.”
Aniek Nouwn, Crystal Palace
Teams
CRYSTAL PALACE
Shae Yáñez; Molly-Mae Sharpe, Alysson Swaby (c), Aniek Nouwen, Lily Woodham; My Cato, Chloe Arthur, Abbie Larkin; Ashleigh Weerden, Katie Stengel, Clarisa Larisey
Subs: Milla-Maj Majasaari; Annabel Blanchard; Izzy Atkinson; Tecla Ezeh; Elise Hughes; Rosie Rowe; Hope Thompson
Manager: Leif Smerud
ASTON VILLA
Sabrina D’Angelo; Noëlle Maritz, Anna Patten, Lucy Parker, Paula Tomás; Chasity Grant, Miri Taylor, Jill Baijings, Kirsty Hanson; Ebony Salmon, Rachel Daly (c)
Subs: Katelin Talbert; Missy-Bo Kearns; Rachel Maltby; Jordan Nobbs; Gabi Nunes; Maz Pacheco; Katie Robinson; Danielle Turner
Manager: Natalia Arroyo
