We're finally going to Spain! -- Recommended Women's Football Matches 2/13/26

Making some changes to the newsletter here. First, as some of you may not know, I am disabled with a heart condition, and sometimes I'm just not gonna have the capacity to do an essay, and that's okay. Along those lines, I think the two-posts-per-week idea was ambitious as sometimes I'm gonna struggle for one. 

I'm also doing somewhat shorter recommendations after having kind of a bad time with a few of last week's matches: The Sicko Zone. Obviously you can watch whatever you want and so can I, but I think it's worth making a dividing line there. Recommendations are now also being done on a Saturday-Friday weekly schedule – although there's one this-Friday match being recommended here because I didn't get it last week.

Finally, I've changed Goal of the Week to Goals of the Week, because why stop at one goal? Goals are cool. This week there's four. 

THIS WEEK'S RECOMMENDATIONS

A very quiet week in Europe, with no superclub versus superclub matches, but it's a calm before the storm with the Champions League second legs coming up in midweek. Still, that gives a chance for the top match of the week to be in Mexico!

1. Club America v Monterrey (Sun 6pm EST, Vix/Youtube) - I was skeptical of Monterrey after an uninspiring Women's Champions Cup campaign in the fall, but two things have swayed me: they keep winning, currently leading the Liga MX Feminil, and they keep scoring absolute banger goals, as seen below. They take on second-place Club America, who are desperate to win the Liga MX Feminil after being runners-up in the last two seasons.

A decided Spanish tinge to this matchup as well, with Monterrey's Lucia Garcia taking on America's Irene Guerrero and Sandra Panos. 

2. Man United v London City (Sun 7am EST, ESPN+/Youtube) - In the middle of their Champions League fixture for this year, Manchester United has a tough game to make sure they have a chance to get into the UCL next year, against would-be superclub London City Lionesses. United have been trying to add necessary depth this season just for matches like this, while London have Dutch star Danielle van de Donk recovering from injury. 

3. Bayern Munich v Werder Bremen (Mon 12pm EST, DAZN) - Bayern are continuing their march toward an undefeated season, while Bremen are firmly in the mix for the last Champions League spot. This is the sort of match that Bayern have to drop points in to get Wolfsburg back in the race.

4. Real Sociedad v Athletic Club (Sat 6am EST, DAZN) - Look ma, it's our first-ever Spanish league match here! There are two major reasons for that: first, that by sheer luck, none of the major Spanish clubs have played each other since I started this recommended list, and second, that the Spanish league seems largely set in terms of first, second, and third, so there's not many contenders.

That third-place team, Real Sociedad, is the only club this year to beat mighty Barcelona, and seems to have wrested that Champions League slot away from Atletico. Last year's fourth-place finishers, Athletic Club, provide a good test even if they're struggling this year. Okay I'll be honest, this match only isn't the Sicko Zone because I wanted to finally get a Spanish match in.

THE SICKO ZONE

I'll be honest, last week I recommended seven matches (eleven with the Champions League) and that was maybe a bit much. So we're doing some quick hits here for when you REALLY need a hit.

5. Arsenal v Brighton (Sun 9am EST, ESPN+/Youtube) - Arsenal look to continue their hot streak and keep the pressure on the leaders. Brighton were good last year and disappointing this year.

6. Tigres v Pumas (Next Fri 7pm EST, Vix/Youtube) - Last year's champions Tigres are struggling a bit, they take on playoff contender Pumas

7. Toluca v Pachuca (Mon 7pm EST, Vix/Youtube) - Two Mexican playoff teams with some big stars, also a tremendous matchup to say out loud. 

8. Leverkusen v Koln (This Fri 12:30pm EST, DAZN) - Fifth place against eighth place in the Frauen-Bundesliga, both firmly in contention for the last Champions League slot.

RECOMMENDED MIDWEEK MATCHES

Two Champions League ties were all but settled in the first league, but two others are have set up a tense second leg.

1. Wolfsburg [2] v Juventus [2] (Thu 12:45pm EST, Paramount+)- Juve head back home after being pulled back to a draw on a last-second Wolfsburg goal. They got their tactics just right against the Germans in the first leg, especially shutting striker Linneth Beersteyn down, but now Wolfsburg have a week to prepare.

2. Real Madrid [3] v Paris FC [2] (Wed 12:45pm EST, Paramount+) - Last week I predicted a defensive struggle in the first leg. Oops. Madrid have the goal advantage heading home, but they do give up goals. This one isn't over, although Real Madrid's world-class players should carry them through at home.

THE MIDWEEK SICKO ZONE

3. Manchester United [3] v Atletico Madrid [0] (Thu pm EST, Paramount+)- Manchester United have a three-goal lead heading home against weaker competition. There is almost certainly no reason to watch this.

4. Arsenal [4] v Leuven [0] (Wed pm EST, Paramount+) - Arsenal have a four-goal lead heading home against significantly weaker competition. There is definitely no reason to watch this. 

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS

Arsenal beat Manchester City 1-0 to carry on their incredible winning run and keep the WSL title race from being entirely out of control. Meanwhile Chelsea halted their skid by beating Spurs 2-0. It will still take something incredible for City to lose the title, but the race for the Champions League spots couldn't be tighter, and one of Man United, Arsenal, and Chelsea will miss out.

In France, PSG thrashed a lethargic Paris FC to tighten the race for Champions League/playoff spots. Two matchdays in Mexico gave its table some separation, with Monterrey and Club America taking a step toward the top (see below), while defending champion Tigres surprisingly lost to Juarez. 

(Champions League results are included in the recommendations above.)

IN OTHER NEWS

Huge week in women's soccer, especially for followers of American soccer. First, Kansas City, Bay FC, and Washington did what amounted to a three-team trade: Washington got $1 million and sent attacking midfielder Croix Bethune to Kansas City, KC got Bethune and sent defensive midfielder Claire Hutton to Bay, and Bay paid the money and acquired Hutton. 

For Bay, this is a huge win. Claire Hutton is a 20-year-old rising star, recently becoming the youngest-ever player to captain the US Women's National Team. A team that was sorely lacking in star power and on-field prowess just massively upgraded both. For Washington, the situation is unfortunate but understandable, after Trinity Rodman's huge new contract, one or more of the stars in their superteam probably wouldn't fit under the cap.

It's Kansas City that I'm completely baffled by. Bethune is a tremendous young talent, but she's an attacking midfielder when the club already has Debinha and Ally Sentnor, and she has an injury history that Hutton doesn't. I'm also a pretty firm believer in building teams from the defensive midfielder role, and Hutton, a 20-year-old who's already one of the best in the world at that, may be one of the absolute top assets in world football. 

Though I describe it as a trade, it was technically two separate transfers of roughly $1 million each, both of which are top-10 transfers in all of women's football, and the second and third largest in NWSL history after Jaedyn Shaw cost Gotham $1.25 million last year. 

The other huge news is the chaos at Chelsea, previously a model of success and stability in England's WSL, and one major American player being shed by the club. Paul Green, the head of women's football for the club for much of their dominant run, was forced out in a power struggle. Players all over the club reacted in disbelief and unhappiness, and one of them, Catarina Macario, rejected a contract from the club and for that, was left off the team's Champions League roster for the knockout phases – a clear signifier she's leaving the team as soon as possible.

The Brazilian-American forward Macario, five years ago, was looking like she might be the best player in the world, before terrible knee injuries cost her several years. She never fully made a first-team spot her own at Chelsea. She is supposedly being pursued by major clubs across Europe and the NWSL, and given her Chelsea situation, a transfer to the US makes the most pragmatic sense if she wants to play right now. A healthy Macario would notably improve almost every NWSL club except maybe Washington or Gotham, but somehow, astonishingly, she doesn't actually qualify for the NWSL's new High Impact Player Rule, despite being exactly the sort of player the rule was theoretically supposed to help with – a star American moving back to the US in the prime of her career. Oops!

GOALS OF THE WEEK

Folks, why stop at one goal? That's less fun than lots of goals. Here we go, four goals this week, starting with Sarai Linder of Wolfsburg's last-second equalizer to get a 2-2 draw with Juve, managing to whip her body around a ball that's slightly under her for a brilliant power shot. 

I promised long-range bangers from Monterrey and there's two from their 2-0 win over Toluca – one set up perfectly on a platter for Marcela Restrepo at 1:44, and at 5:08, Alice Soto seals the game in stoppage time with an unstoppable bomb. 

Finally, Club America got the equalizer in a 2-1 win over Cruz Azul through Gaby Garcia, first showing incredible strength and balance to win the ball, then skill to curl it into the net, at 4:29 in the video. Whew.