The importance of our leaders on and off the pitch can’t be understated as we possess one of the most youthful and exciting sides in the Barclays Women’s Super League.
View how the English pair once again shone in the division last term below…
STEPH HOUGHTON
After an unfortunate Achilles injury curtailed Houghton’s 2021/22 season midway through the campaign, our iconic captain battled back to full fitness to reinstate herself as one of most vital cogs in Gareth Taylor’s machine.
Under the Welshman, City look to break stubborn defences down with intricate and accurate passing, often building from the back with Houghton an excellent architect of this.
Across her league outings, she maintained a pass accuracy of 84.3% with 810 of her 961 attempted passes finding a sky blue colleague.
And when it comes to deterring opposition attacks, she once again flourishes in this department as the dominant defender recorded 29 successful duels won and tallied 84 ball recoveries in the WSL.
Shortly after Houghton regained her place in City’s starting XI, she reflected her immense leadership qualities perfectly in a vital 2-1 victory over Arsenal at the Academy Stadium in February.
Goals from Chloe Kelly and Lauren Hemp handed us a commanding lead at the break before Rafaelle Souza halved our advantage shortly after the interval.
However, with the Gunners pushing for an equaliser, our captain marshalled our defence perfectly which massively contributed to us gaining a crucial three points.
ALEX GREENWOOD
Greenwood enjoyed another stellar campaign for City, proving instrumental at the Academy Stadium throughout her 29 appearance in all competitions.
Much like her defensive partner, Houghton, the England international flourished with the ball at her feet – making her crucial to the way we wanted to play.
The versatile defender maintained a pass success percentage of 86% in the WSL, with 1441 of her 1676 attempted finding a colleague.
Not only did she spark attacks with her immense distribution, but she was able to comfortably drive forward with the ball to move our transitions through the thirds.
Greenwood’s eight dribbles completed perfectly highlights this.
Similarly to Houghton, she is also fantastic when thwarting opposition attacks of their own. In total, she recorded 29 interceptions, 67 duels won, 23 tackles and 158 recoveries in the WSL in 2022/23.
In December, Greenwood penned a new contract at City – committing her future to the Club until 2026.
And perhaps her standout moment last term, among many, was her display in our 3-0 victory away to Spurs in October.
Firstly, she provided a pinpoint assist for Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw’s opener with a wickedly whipped free-kick which the Jamaican nodded home before an assured display in London.
Her organisational and leadership was on show, too, in the capital as she helped us gain a clean sheet at Brisbane Road.
