Birmingham City Faces Manchester City in Women's Super League Opener
Birmingham City return to the Women’s Super League on Sunday by walking straight back into the scene of their darkest recent memory – and Amy Merricks would not have it any other way.
Same stadium. Same opponent. Very different Birmingham.
In May 2022, a 6-0 hammering at the Joie Stadium sealed Birmingham’s relegation and ended their WSL stay with a brutal full stop. Four years in the second tier, a rebuild, a title and a promotion later, they go back to Manchester City as champions of WSL 2 and with a head coach who has no interest in playing the grateful guest.
“We are here to compete, not just make up the numbers,” Merricks said, her message as sharp as it was simple. She knows the scale of the task. She is embracing it.
City did not drop a single point at home in the league last season, winning all 11 WSL matches in Manchester on their way to the title. The Joie became a fortress; teams arrived with hope and left with damage. Birmingham, though, arrive with something different: momentum.
They clinched promotion on the final day of last season, finishing with an attacking record that turned heads – 2.09 goals per game and a reputation for going forward with intent. That identity, Merricks insists, is non-negotiable, even against the champions.
“There is a core part of our identity that is non-negotiable for us as Blues and myself as a head coach,” she said. “We are a progressive team, we will find ways to create and score. We are really clear on what our strengths are and what we need to maximise.”
The temptation for a newly promoted side is obvious: sit deep, survive, hope. Merricks is not blind to the demands of the division – “This is the best league in the world, it is going to be tough and a challenge” – but she refuses to dilute the very qualities that dragged Birmingham back to the top flight.
“What we can't do is lose our strengths. We have to amplify those and put ourselves in the best position possible,” she said. “We have to focus on what we can control and that's how we can compete. We don't fear anyone. I think we showed that in the cup competitions last year.”
That last line will have landed with Andree Jeglertz. He has already seen what this Birmingham side can do when the stakes rise.
Five months to the day before Sunday’s opener, City had to grind out a 1-0 win away at Birmingham in the quarter-finals of the Women’s FA Cup. It was tight, awkward, and far from comfortable.
“We had a tough game against them last year,” the City boss admitted. “They were tactically very good and destroyed all the space on the field, defending low and their transitioning was very good. There are threats in their team we need to give attention to.”
He knows the dynamic of this fixture has changed. Birmingham are no longer a club in freefall, they are the new arrivals with fresh legs, clear ideas and the kind of energy that can cause problems on opening day.
“Playing against a team that is new in the league is always a challenge because I know they are coming in with a lot of energy in the first game,” Jeglertz said.
City, for their part, begin something they have not experienced in a decade: a league title defence. The view from the top is different, the pressure heavier, the margin for error thinner. Jeglertz is determined that his players do not slip into the mindset of a team protecting what it has.
“We are still chasing, chasing to win again,” he said. “If you start protecting things, I don't think that will help us. We need to be in a mood of hunger, trying to win again, to compete in different tournaments.
If we drop a little bit in performance or attitude, teams will go past us.”
His squad will not be at full strength. Forward Vivianne Miedema is out until at least late autumn with a knee injury, stripping City of one of their most ruthless finishers as the season kicks off. Defender Rebecca Knaak will also miss Birmingham’s visit because of a foot problem.
There is some better news. Defender Jade Rose and midfielder Grace Clinton have returned to training and could edge back into contention, but summer signing Niamh Charles remains, in Jeglertz’s words, “a big question mark” for Sunday.
So the champions start their defence with a few key pieces missing and a promoted side bristling with intent in front of them. Birmingham will arrive at the Joie with the scars of 2022 still somewhere in the background, but Merricks is steering everything towards the present.
“I think it's a great time to play Man City,” she said. “We know it's going to be a challenge but we are well and truly up for it. Our focus is on ourselves, we appreciate and respect who they are and what they have, but our mindset doesn't change.”
Toe-to-toe with the champions, on day one, in the very place where it all fell apart four years ago. For Birmingham, there could hardly be a harsher welcome back – or a better chance to show how far they have come.
