2022–23 Leicester City W.F.C. season

Leicester City

2022–23 season
Head coach	Lydia Bedford (until 3 November) Willie Kirk (from 3 November)
Stadium	King Power Stadium, Leicester Pirelli Stadium, Burton upon Trent
Women's Super League	10th
FA Cup	Fourth round
League Cup	Group stage
Top goalscorer	League: Hannah Cain, Carrie Jones and Sam Tierney (2) All: Sam Tierney (4)
Highest home attendance	4,162 (vs. Liverpool, 29 April)
Lowest home attendance	1,237 (vs. Everton, 12 March)
Average home league attendance	3,027
Home colours Away colours Third colours

The 2022–23 Leicester City W.F.C. season was the club's 19th season of existence and their second season in the Women's Super League, the highest level of the football pyramid. Along with competing in the WSL, the club also contested two domestic cup competitions: the FA Cup and the League Cup.

On 3 November 2022, Leicester sacked manager Lydia Bedford after 332 days in charge and promoted Willie Kirk to the role. He had joined the club as Director of Women's and Girls' Football in July 2022.[1]

Squad

As of 28 January 2023

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  ENG Demi Lambourne 2 DF  AUS Courtney Nevin (on loan from Hammarby) 3 DF  ENG Sam Tierney 4 DF  NZL CJ Bott 5 DF  ENG Abbie McManus 6 DF  ENG Georgia Eaton-Collins 8 MF  ENG Molly Pike 9 FW  ENG Jessica Sigsworth 10 FW  ENG Aileen Whelan (captain) 11 FW  ENG Lachante Paul 13 DF  USA Erin Simon 14 MF  WAL Josie Green 15 DF  SCO Sophie Howard 16 MF  WAL Carrie Jones (on loan from Manchester United)

No. Pos. Nation Player 19 FW  AUS Remy Siemsen 20 FW  ENG Missy Goodwin 21 FW  WAL Hannah Cain 22 DF  NGA Ashleigh Plumptre 23 DF  ENG Jemma Purfield 27 MF  ENG Shannon O'Brien 28 GK  ENG Kirstie Levell 30 MF  ENG Ruby Mace (on loan from Manchester City) 32 MF  ENG Ava Baker 33 GK  GER Janina Leitzig (on loan from Bayern Munich) 34 FW  ENG Mackenzie Smith 35 GK  ENG Sophia Poor 40 MF  ENG Monique Robinson 41 MF  ENG Jess Reavill

Preseason

Leicester City v OH Leuven

27 July 2022 Friendly	Leicester City	0–1	OH Leuven	Leicester
		Report	Eurlings 11'	Stadium: Belvoir Drive Attendance: Behind-closed-doors

Leicester City v Bristol City

30 July 2022 Friendly	Leicester City	0–1	Bristol City	Leicester
14:00		Report	Morgan 64'	Stadium: Belvoir Drive Attendance: Behind-closed-doors

Leicester City v Southampton

14 August 2022 Friendly	Leicester City	1–0	Southampton	Leicester
12:00	Tierney 49'	Report		Stadium: Belvoir Drive Attendance: Behind-closed-doors

Leicester City v Reading

20 August 2022 Friendly	Leicester City	3–1	Reading	Leicester
	Bott Brougham Flint	Report	Rowe	Stadium: Belvoir Drive Attendance: Behind-closed-doors

Leicester City v Brighton & Hove Albion

27 August 2022 Friendly	Leicester City	1–2	Brighton & Hove Albion	Leicester
	Howard	Report	Robinson Connolly	Stadium: Belvoir Drive Attendance: Behind-closed-doors

Women's Super League

Main article: 2022–23 Women's Super League

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
22	5	1	16	15	48	−33	16	3	1	7	11	18	−7	2	0	9	4	30	−26

Last updated: 27 May 2023.
Source: Barclays WSL

Results by matchday

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22
Ground	H	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	H	A	A	H	A	A	H	H	A	A	H	A
Result	L	L	L	L	L	L	L	L	L	W	L	W	L	D	L	L	W	W	L	L	L	W
Position	9	11	11	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	11	10	11	11	11	10

Source: ^[citation needed]
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Results

Everton v Leicester City

11 September 2022	Everton	P–P	Leicester City	Liverpool
13:00				Stadium: Walton Hall Park
Note: The FA postponed all of the weekend's football fixtures following the death of Elizabeth II on 8 September 2022.[2]

Leicester City v Tottenham Hotspur

18 September 2022 1	Leicester City	1–2	Tottenham Hotspur	Leicester
15:00	Spence 58' (o.g.) O'Brien  79'	Report	Neville 35',  85' Spence 45+2'	Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 2,868 Referee: Kirsty Dowle

Leicester City v Aston Villa

25 September 2022 2	Leicester City	0–2	Aston Villa	Leicester
15:00		Report	Daly 3' (pen.) Lehmann  16' Gielnik 86'	Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 2,713 Referee: Thomas Parsons

Everton v Leicester City

29 September 2022 3	Everton	1–0	Leicester City	Liverpool
18:30	Graham  38' Björn  52' Levell 90+4' (o.g.)	Report	O'Brien  70' Plumptre  81' Pike  88'	Stadium: Walton Hall Park Attendance: 724 Referee: Cheryl Foster
Note: Rescheduled from 11 September 2022.

Manchester City v Leicester City

16 October 2022 4	Manchester City	4–0	Leicester City	Manchester
14:00	Shaw 24', 79' Greenwood  42' Hemp 72' Hasegawa 88'	Report	O'Brien  39'	Stadium: Academy Stadium Attendance: 2,553 Referee: Farai Hallam

Leicester City v Manchester United

23 October 2022 5	Leicester City	0–1	Manchester United	Leicester
15:00	Howard  7' Plumptre  24'	Report	Parris 34' Zelem  58' Toone  90+5'	Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 4,007 Referee: Neil Hair

Reading v Leicester City

30 October 2022 6	Reading	2–1	Leicester City	Reading
14:00	Bryson  45+2' Rowe  60', 90', 90+2' Eikeland  75'	Report	Simon  31' O'Brien  33' Flint 36'	Stadium: Madejski Stadium Attendance: 1,559 Referee: Emily Heaslip

Leicester City v Arsenal

6 November 2022 7	Leicester City	0–4	Arsenal	Leicester
14:00	Bott  43'	Report	Maanum 13' Foord 22' Catley 37' Blackstenius 48'	Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 3,590 Referee: Amy Fearn

West Ham United v Leicester City

20 November 2022 8	West Ham United	1–0	Leicester City	Dagenham
15:00	Walker  46' Asseyi  56' Atkinson 88'	Report		Stadium: Victoria Road Attendance: 1,038 Referee: Louise Saunders

Leicester City v Chelsea

3 December 2022 9	Leicester City	0–8	Chelsea	Leicester
15:00	Tierney	Report	Reiten 4' Fleming 13', 50' Kirby 39', 82' Charles 41' Kerr 45' England 75'	Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 3,023 Referee: Amy Fearn

Liverpool v Leicester City

11 December 2022	Liverpool	P–P	Leicester City	Birkenhead
14:00				Stadium: Prenton Park
Note: Postponed due to frozen pitch.[3]

Leicester City v Brighton & Hove Albion

15 January 2023 10	Leicester City	3–0	Brighton & Hove Albion	Leicester
15:00	Whelan 45' Tierney 48' Robinson 69' Baker  74'	Report		Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 2,329 Referee: Cheryl Foster

Tottenham Hotspur v Leicester City

22 January 2023	Tottenham Hotspur	P–P	Leicester City	Leyton
14:00				Stadium: Brisbane Road
Note: Postponed due to frozen pitch.[4]

Leicester City v Manchester City

4 February 2023 11	Leicester City	0–2	Manchester City	Leicester
11:30	Plumptre  52'	Report	Shaw 61' Kelly 74'	Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 2,815 Referee: Amy Fearn

Liverpool v Leicester City

12 February 2023 12	Liverpool	0–1	Leicester City	Birkenhead
14:00	Lawley  83'	Report	Cain 8' Tierney  72' Mace  83' Bott  90+2'	Stadium: Prenton Park Attendance: 1,818 Referee: Richie Watkins
Note: Rescheduled from 11 December 2022.

Manchester United v Leicester City

5 March 2023 13	Manchester United	5–1	Leicester City	Leigh
12:30	Russo 15', 36', 53' Galton 64' García 84'	Report	Whelan  24' Siemsen 48' Tierney  69' Nevin  82'	Stadium: Leigh Sports Village Attendance: 3,623 Referee: Melissa Burgin

Leicester City v Everton

12 March 2023 14	Leicester City	0–0	Everton	Leicester
15:00	Green  15' Mace  90+3'	Report		Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 1,237 Referee: Stacey Fullicks

Tottenham Hotspur v Leicester City

15 March 2023 15	Tottenham Hotspur	1–0	Leicester City	Leyton
19:00	Bartrip  37' England 65'	Report		Stadium: Brisbane Road Attendance: 305 Referee: Yoshimi Yamashita
Note: Rescheduled from 22 January 2023.

Aston Villa v Leicester City

26 March 2023 16	Aston Villa	5–0	Leicester City	Aston
14:00	Dali 6' Lehmann 35', 71' Daly 45', 55'	Report		Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 6,489 Referee: Jane Simms

Leicester City v Reading

2 April 2023 17	Leicester City	2–1	Reading	Leicester
15:00	Tierney 20',  74' Mace  45+5' Jones 90+6'	Report	Woodham  41' Wellings 45' Bryson  66'	Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 2,527 Referee: Richie Watkins

Chelsea v Leicester City

23 April 2023	Chelsea	P–P	Leicester City	Kingston upon Thames
				Stadium: Kingsmeadow
Note: Postponed due to Chelsea's participation in the UEFA Women's Champions League

Leicester City v Liverpool

29 April 2023 18	Leicester City	4–0	Liverpool	Leicester
12:30	Green 15' Jones 21',  40' Plumptre 48' Goodwin 90+6'	Report		Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 4,162 Referee: Emily Heaslip

Arsenal v Leicester City

5 May 2023 19	Arsenal	1–0	Leicester City	Borehamwood
19:30	Maanum 64',  90+7'	Report	Plumptre  48' Bott  90+8'	Stadium: Meadow Park Attendance: 3,982 Referee: Emily Heaslip

Chelsea v Leicester City

10 May 2023 20	Chelsea	6–0	Leicester City	Kingston upon Thames
19:00	Reiten 8' Cuthbert 18' Harder 32', 42' James 56' Fleming  72' Čanković 90+3'	Report	Cain  73'	Stadium: Kingsmeadow Attendance: 1,308 Referee: Rebecca Welch

Leicester City v West Ham United

21 May 2023 21	Leicester City	1–2	West Ham United	Leicester
15:00	Mace  39'  90+4' Cain 90+9' (pen.)	Report	Howard 18' (o.g.) Parker  45+7' Brynjarsdóttir 60' (pen.) Fisk  71' Longhurst  86'	Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 4,023 Referee: Lisa Benn

Brighton & Hove Albion v Leicester City

27 May 2023 22	Brighton & Hove Albion	0–1	Leicester City	Crawley
14:30	Lee  31' Symonds  64'	Report	Bott  27' Baker 73'	Stadium: Broadfield Stadium Attendance: 3,073 Referee: Abigail Byrne

League table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
8	West Ham United	22	6	3	13	23	44	−21	21
9	Tottenham Hotspur	22	5	3	14	31	47	−16	18
10	Leicester City	22	5	1	16	15	48	−33	16
11	Brighton & Hove Albion	22	4	4	14	26	63	−37	16
12	Reading (R)	22	3	2	17	23	57	−34	11	Relegation to the Championship

Source: Women's Super League
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored.
(R) Relegated

Women's FA Cup

Main article: 2022–23 Women's FA Cup

As a member of the first tier, Leicester City entered the FA Cup in the fourth round proper.

Leicester City v Reading

29 January 2023 Fourth round	Leicester City	2–2 (2–3 p)	Reading	Burton upon Trent
16:00	Tierney 29' Howard  87' Cain 92' Nevin  105+1'	Report	Troelsgaard 5',  29' Moore  74' Primmer  91' Mukandi 102'	Stadium: Pirelli Stadium Referee: Pearson
	Penalties
	Whelan Cain Plumptre Eaton-Collins Jones		Vanhaevermaet Dowie Mukandi Cooper

FA Women's League Cup

Main article: 2022–23 FA Women's League Cup

Group stage

Blackburn Rovers v Leicester City

2 October 2022 Group stage	Blackburn Rovers	0–3	Leicester City	Bamber Bridge
14:00		Report	Smith 6' Scofield 49' Whelan 65'	Stadium: Sir Tom Finney Stadium

Leicester City v Liverpool

26 October 2022 Group stage	Leicester City	0–4	Liverpool	Burton upon Trent
19:00		Report	Kearns 14' Roberts 33' Furness 45+2' Stengel 72'	Stadium: Pirelli Stadium

Sunderland v Leicester City

8 December 2022 Group stage	Sunderland	P–P	Leicester City	Hetton-le-Hole
19:30				Stadium: Eppleton CW
Note: Postponed due to frozen pitch.[5]

Leicester City v Manchester City

18 December 2022 Group stage	Leicester City	P–P	Manchester City	Burton upon Trent
15:00				Stadium: Pirelli Stadium
Note: Postponed due to frozen pitch.[6]

Sunderland v Leicester City

11 January 2023 Group stage	Sunderland	0–5	Leicester City	Hetton-le-Hole
19:30		Report	Goodwin 45+9' Robinson  49' Tierney 70' Baker 77' Pike 82', 90+1'	Stadium: Eppleton CW
Note: Rescheduled from 8 December 2022.

Leicester City v Manchester City

18 January 2023 Group stage	Leicester City	0–1	Manchester City	Burton upon Trent
19:00		Report	Angeldahl 90'	Stadium: Pirelli Stadium
Note: Rescheduled from 18 December 2022.

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	WPEN	LPEN	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Manchester City	4	4	0	0	0	12	0	+12	12	Advanced to knock-out stage
2	Liverpool	4	3	0	0	1	6	2	+4	9	Possible knock-out stage based on ranking
3	Leicester City	4	2	0	0	2	8	5	+3	6
4	Sunderland	3	0	0	0	3	0	9	−9	0
5	Blackburn Rovers	3	0	0	0	3	0	10	−10	0

Source: ^[citation needed]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record

Squad statistics

Appearances

As of 27 May 2023

Starting appearances are listed first, followed by substitute appearances after the + symbol where applicable.

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		WSL		FA Cup		League Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	ENG	Demi Lambourne	3	0	2	0	0	0	1	0
2	DF	AUS	Courtney Nevin	13	0	12	0	0+1	0	0	0
3	DF	ENG	Sam Tierney	26	4	21	2	1	1	2+2	1
4	DF	NZL	CJ Bott	23	0	13+6	0	1	0	3	0
5	DF	ENG	Abbie McManus	4	0	2	0	0	0	2	0
6	DF	ENG	Georgia Eaton-Collins	6	0	3+2	0	0+1	0	0	0
8	MF	ENG	Molly Pike	22	2	8+10	0	1	0	2+1	2
9	FW	ENG	Jessica Sigsworth	1	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	0
10	FW	ENG	Aileen Whelan	27	2	22	1	1	0	2+2	1
11	FW	ENG	Lachante Paul	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
13	DF	USA	Erin Simon	15	0	9+2	0	0+1	0	1+2	0
14	MF	WAL	Josie Green	16	1	12+3	1	0	0	0+1	0
15	DF	SCO	Sophie Howard	26	0	21	0	1	0	3+1	0
16	FW	WAL	Carrie Jones	22	2	15+4	2	0+1	0	0+2	0
19	FW	AUS	Remy Siemsen	10	1	7+3	1	0	0	0	0
20	FW	ENG	Missy Goodwin	25	2	8+14	1	1	0	2	1
21	FW	WAL	Hannah Cain	17	3	13+1	2	0+1	1	2	0
22	DF	NGA	Ashleigh Plumptre	24	1	20	1	1	0	3	0
23	DF	ENG	Jemma Purfield	18	0	11+4	0	1	0	2	0
27	MF	ENG	Shannon O'Brien	11	0	4+6	0	0	0	0+1	0
28	GK	ENG	Kirstie Levell	10	0	7	0	0	0	3	0
30	MF	ENG	Ruby Mace	11	0	10	0	1	0	0	0
32	MF	ENG	Ava Baker	14	2	1+8	1	1	0	4	1
33	GK	GER	Janina Leitzig	14	0	13	0	1	0	0	0
34	FW	ENG	Mackenzie Smith	8	1	0+4	0	0	0	2+2	1
35	GK	ENG	Sophia Poor	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
40	MF	ENG	Monique Robinson	10	1	0+6	1	0	0	3+1	0
41	MF	ENG	Jess Reavill	2	0	1	0	0	0	0+1	0
Players away from the club on loan:
7	FW	ENG	Natasha Flint	11	1	5+4	1	0	0	2	0
12	FW	ENG	Ellen Jones	2	0	0	0	0	0	1+1	0
44	MF	ENG	Connie Scofield	4	1	0+2	0	0	0	2	1
Players who appeared for the club but left during the season:
2	DF	NIR	Demi Vance	5	0	1+2	0	0	0	2	0
6	DF	ENG	Georgia Brougham	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0

Transfers

Transfers in

Date	Position	Nationality	Name	From	Ref.
7 July 2022	MF		Josie Green	Tottenham Hotspur	[7]
8 July 2022	FW		Aileen Whelan	Brighton & Hove Albion	[8]
11 July 2022	DF		Erin Simon	Racing Louisville	[9]
8 September 2022	FW		Ellen Jones	Colorado Buffaloes	[10]
16 September 2022	DF		Demi Vance	Rangers	[11]
12 January 2023	FW		Remy Siemsen	Sydney FC	[12]
26 January 2023	DF		Georgia Eaton-Collins	UCF Knights	[13]

Loans in

Date	Position	Nationality	Name	From	Until	Ref.
21 July 2022	MF		Carrie Jones	Manchester United	End of season	[14]
13 January 2023	GK		Janina Leitzig	Bayern Munich	End of season	[15]
24 January 2023	DF		Courtney Nevin	Hammarby	End of season	[16]
28 January 2023	MF		Ruby Mace	Manchester City	End of season	[17]

Transfers out

Date	Position	Nationality	Name	To	Ref.
23 May 2022	FW		Esmee de Graaf	Feyenoord	[18][19]
	FW		Paige Bailey-Gayle	Crystal Palace	[18][20]
	GK		Sophie Harris	Southampton	[18][21]
	FW		Abbi Grant	Glasgow City	[18][22]
	MF		Luana Zajmi	Pomurje	[18][23]
29 July 2022	MF		Elysia Boddy	Bristol City	[24]
12 January 2023	DF		Demi Vance	Glentoran	[25][26]
20 January 2023	DF		Georgia Brougham	London City Lionesses	[27][28]

Loans out

Date	Position	Nationality	Name	To	Until	Ref.
8 July 2022	MF		Sophie Barker	Sheffield United	End of season	[29]
27 July 2022	FW		Mackenzie Smith[a]	Nottingham Forest	End of season	[30]
29 July 2022	MF		Charlie Devlin	Birmingham City	End of season	[31]
13 January 2023	FW		Ellen Jones	Coventry United	End of season	[32]
18 January 2023	MF		Connie Scofield	Coventry United	End of season	[33]
31 January 2023	FW		Natasha Flint	Celtic	End of season	[34]
25 February 2023	GK		Demi Lambourne[b]	Coventry United	3 March 2023	[35]

1. Dual registration
2. Emergency goalkeeper loan

References

1. "Kirk replaces Bedford as Leicester manager". BBC Sport.
2. "Premier League, EFL, Scottish, WSL and non-League: This weekend's matches postponed". Sky Sports.
3. "LCFC Women: Liverpool Visit Postponed". LCFC. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
4. "Spurs Women v Leicester – match postponed". Tottenham Hotspur.
5. "SAFC Women vs Leicester City Women postponed". Sunderland AFC. 8 December 2022.
6. "LCFC Women: Manchester City Fixture Postponed". www.lcfc.com.
7. "LCFC Women Swoop For Wales International Josie Green". Leicester City FC.
8. "LCFC Women Sign Midfielder Aileen Whelan". Leicester City FC.
9. "Leicester City sign American defender Simon". BBC Sport.
10. "Leicester City sign American defender Simon". BBC Sport.
11. "Demi Vance: Northern Ireland defender signs for Leicester City". BBC Sport.
12. "Leicester City sign striker Siemsen from Sydney FC". BBC Sport.
13. "WSL strugglers Leicester sign Eaton-Collins". BBC Sport.
14. "Carrie Jones loaned to Leicester City Women". www.manutd.com.
15. "Janina Leitzig Makes LCFC Women Loan Switch". www.lcfc.com.
16. "Courtney Nevin Makes LCFC Women Loan Switch". www.lcfc.com.
17. "Man City midfielder Mace joins Leicester on loan". BBC Sport.
18. "Five players set to depart LCFC Women". Leicester City FC.
19. "Feyenoord Vrouwen 1 versterkt zich met Esmee de Graaf". Feyenoord (in Dutch).
20. "Crystal Palace Women announce 22/23 squad". Crystal Palace.
21. "Southampton FC Women land Sophie Harris". Southampton FC.
22. "Glasgow City confirm permanent signing of Abbi Grant". Glasgow City FC.
23. Dominko, Peter. "Pomurke odštevajo do nove sezone, najprej derbi, nato še kvalifikacije UEFA Lige prvakinj". sobotainfo.com (in Slovenian).
24. "Boddy is a Robin". Bristol City.
25. "Vance Departs LCFC Women". www.lcfc.com.
26. "Glentoran snap up Northern Ireland international Demi Vance". Belfast Telegraph. 13 April 2023.
27. Pinnock, Hannah (20 January 2023). "Leicester City Women confirm Georgia Brougham departure". Leicestershire Mercury.
28. Frith, Wilf (9 August 2023). "Georgia Brougham joins London City Lionesses - SheKicks".
29. "Barker Heads To Sheffield United Women On Loan". Leicester City FC.
30. "Forest Women sign Mackenzie Smith". Nottingham Forest Football Club.
31. "Charlie Devlin Joins Birmingham City On Loan". Leicester City FC.
32. Pinnock, Hannah (13 January 2023). "Leicester City midfielder Ellen Jones joins Coventry United on loan". Leicestershire Mercury.
33. "Connie Scofield Joins Coventry United On Loan". www.lcfc.com.
34. "Leicester's Flint joins Celtic Women on loan". BBC Sport.
35. "Lambourne Joins Coventry United On Emergency Loan". www.lcfc.com.