How Liverpool won promotion back to the WSL

Liverpool were a founder member of the WSL in 2011 and are a big part of the league’s history thanks to back-to-back titles won in 2013 and 2014, the latter coming on an incredible final day when any one of three clubs had a chance to lift the trophy.

But the Reds dropped out of the top flight in controversial circumstances in 2019/20 when the season was abandoned and things decided on a points per game basis.

The WSL missed Liverpool for two years until 2022 when promotion was secured.

This is how they did it…

There is always likely to be a degree of player turnover between seasons, but Liverpool were able to keep hold of invaluable experience in the squad when they were initially relegated in 2020.

Centre-back Niamh Fahey, who won trophies with Arsenal and Chelsea earlier in her career, had joined the Reds in 2018 but stayed on Merseyside and was made captain. It was a similar story for seasoned veterans Rhiannon Roberts and Rachel Furness, both of whom arrived prior to relegation but played important roles in the promotion push.

Even Melissa Lawley, only just 28 when promotion was secured last season, had experience at the very highest level after coming through the youth ranks at Arsenal and later playing in the Champions League for both Birmingham and Manchester City.

Matt Beard laid the foundations for success that would follow at Chelsea at the very start of the WSL era and later guided Liverpool to back-to-back titles in 2013 and 2014. He also took West Ham to an FA Cup final in their first year as a professional club and there are few coaches working in the English game with a record of success like his over the last 10 years.

Beard was re-appointed as manager in the summer of 2021, speaking at the time of his great love for the club and the city, before setting out his ambitions for the season ahead.

“I’ve come here to get the team promoted, it’s not going to be easy and it’s probably going to be the toughest Championship season ever,” he said.

“But we have a good core group here and the infrastructure is there. It’s about recruiting the right players to improve the team and making sure we have one common goal as a group to achieve what we want to achieve.”

Although Liverpool kept several experienced heads around, a number of established pros…