Rehanne Skinner has named her final West Ham United women’s team starting XI of 2024 which sees defender Li Mengwen return to the line-up for the trip to Aston Villa in the Barclays Women’s Super League.
Making her seventh start for the Hammers, the defender comes in for Kirsty Smith, who is named on the bench, which is the only change to the side that defeated Crystal Palace 5-2 at Chigwell Construction Stadium on Sunday.
The 29-year-old China international started from the off in the women’s team’s 3-0 dispatching of Southampton in the Women’s League Cup on Wednesday night, to which nine changes have been made for the clash at Villa Park.
That means Kinga Szemik returns in goal for her tenth successive WSL appearance as the Irons go in search of back-to-back clean sheets for the first time in all competitions this term.
Alongside Mengwen in the back four are Anouk Denton, Amber Tysiak and Shelina Zadorsky, who bagged her first goal for the Club in midweek.
Having risen to the top of the Hammers’ individual scoring charts in the WSL last Sunday, Captain Katrina Gorry is partnered by Oona Siren for the seventh league fixture in a row in midfield, looking to support the interchangeable attack of Viviane Asseyi, Seraina Piubel, Manuela Paví and Riko Ueki.
The front four will be aiming to keep up Skinner’s side’s impressive goalscoring form which has seen them net 14 times in their last four matches in all competitions.
The West Ham manager has nine substitutes on her bench and can make a maximum of five changes. Megan Walsh is the goalkeeping option with Shannon Cooke, Camila Sáez and Smith providing defensive cover.
Marika Bergman Lundin, Dagný Brynjarsdóttir, Halle Houssein, Soraya Walsh and Emma Harries are the other names who will look to make an impact for the Irons at Villa Park.
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West Ham United: Szemik, Denton, Tysiak, Zadorsky, Mengwen, Siren, Gorry ©, Piubel, Paví, Asseyi, Ueki
Subs: M. Walsh (GK), Smith, Sáez, Cooke, Bergman Lundin, Brynjarsdóttir, Houssein, S. Walsh, Harries
Aston Villa: D’Angelo, Tomás, Turner, Patten, Nobbs, Staniforth, Dali, Daly ©, Maritz, Salmon, Leon
Subs: Poor (GK), Mayling, Kearns, Mullett, Hanson, Grant, Taylor, Nunes, Pacheco
Referee: Grace Lowe
