2020–21 Aston Villa W.F.C. season

The 2020–21 Aston Villa W.F.C. season was the club's 25th season under their Aston Villa affiliation and the organisation's 47th overall season in existence. It was their debut season in the FA Women's Super League following promotion from the Championship, and as a fully professional team.^[1] Along with competing in the WSL, the club also contested two domestic cup competitions: the FA Cup and the League Cup.

Aston Villa

2020–21 season
Owner	NSWE Group
Chairman	Nassef Sawiris
Manager	Gemma Davies (until 25 January) Marcus Bignot (interim) (from 25 January)
Stadium	Bescot Stadium, Walsall
FA WSL	10th
FA Cup	Fourth round
League Cup	Quarter-final
Top goalscorer	League: Ramona Petzelberger (3) All: Shania Hayles and Nadine Hanssen (4)
Home colours Away colours Third colours
← 2019–20 2021–22 →

Ahead of the campaign the team relocated from the Trevor Brown Memorial Ground to Bescot Stadium in Walsall.^[2]

On 25 January 2021, it was announced Marcus Bignot had been appointed interim manager with the current coaching team, including head coach Gemma Davies, all retaining their positions parallel with the appointment.^[3][4]

Current squad

As of 12 January 2021.^[5]

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

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK   ENG Sian Rogers 3 DF   ENG Asmita Ale 4 DF   ENG Ella Franklin-Fraiture 5 DF   ENG Elisha N'Dow 6 DF   ENG Anita Asante 7 MF   ENG Emma Follis 8 MF   SCO Chloe Arthur 9 FW   DEN Stine Larsen 10 MF   GER Ramona Petzelberger 11 MF   ENG Amy West 12 FW   ENG Jodie Hutton 13 DF   GER Caroline Siems

No. Pos. Nation Player 14 MF   ENG Emily Syme 15 DF   ENG Natalie Haigh 16 DF   ENG Olivia McLoughlin 17 FW   ENG Sophie Haywood 19 FW   POR Diana Silva 20 FW   JPN Mana Iwabuchi 21 MF   GER Marisa Ewers (captain) 22 FW   ENG Shania Hayles 23 MF   NED Nadine Hanssen 27 GK   ENG Charlotte Clarke^[a] 29 GK   GER Lisa Weiß

1. Dual registration with Derby County, remains eligible for Aston Villa when called upon

Pre-season

Aston Villa v Arsenal

2 August 2020 Friendly	Aston Villa	–	Arsenal	Aston
		Report		Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: Behind-closed-doors
Note: No official scoreline released

Aston Villa v Manchester City

16 August 2020 Friendly	Aston Villa	–	Manchester City	Bodymoor Heath
		Report		Stadium: Bodymoor Heath Training Ground Attendance: Behind-closed-doors
Note: No official scoreline released

Manchester United v Aston Villa

23 August 2020 Friendly	Manchester United	–	Aston Villa	Leigh
		Report		Stadium: Leigh Sports Village Attendance: Behind-closed-doors
Note: No official scoreline released

FA Women's Super League

Main article: 2020–21 FA WSL

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	3	6	13	15	47	−32	15	1	3	7	5	25	−20	2	3	6	10	22	−12

Last updated: 9 May 2021.
Source: FA 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	A	H	A	H	H	A	A	A	H	H	H	H	A	H	A	A	A	H	A	H	A
Result	L	L	L	W	L	L	W	L	L	D	L	W	L	L	L	L	L	D	D	D	D	D
Position	9	10	11	10	10	11	9	11	11	11	11	10	10	10	10	11	12	11	11	11	11	10

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

Results

Aston Villa v Manchester City

5 September 2020 1	Aston Villa	0–2	Manchester City	Aston
14:30		Report	Stanway   6', 21'	Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Abigail Byrne

Reading v Aston Villa

13 September 2020 2	Reading	3–1	Aston Villa	Reading
14:00	Eikeland   24' Bruton   40',   85' Williams   45+3' (pen.) Harding   72'	Report	Siems   59' Larsen   79' (pen.),   90+6'	Stadium: Madejski Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Emily Heaslip

Aston Villa v Everton

3 October 2020 3	Aston Villa	0–6	Everton	Walsall
12:30		Report	Raso   21', 24' Emslie   27', 53' Gauvin   40' Boye-Hlorkah   51'	Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Kirsty Dowle

Bristol City v Aston Villa

11 October 2020	Bristol City	P–P	Aston Villa	Bath
14:00				Stadium: Twerton Park
Note: Postponed following a positive COVID-19 test from an Aston Villa player^[6]

Aston Villa v Chelsea

17 October 2020	Aston Villa	P–P	Chelsea	Walsall
12:30				Stadium: Bescot Stadium
Note: Postponed following a positive COVID-19 test from an Aston Villa player^[6]

Brighton & Hove Albion v Aston Villa

8 November 2020 4	Brighton & Hove Albion	0–2	Aston Villa	Crawley
14:00	Simpkins   68' Kerkdijk   82' Bowman   84' Connolly   88'	Report	Asante   59' Hutton   71' Petzelberger   90+2'	Stadium: Broadfield Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Stacey Pearson

Aston Villa v Birmingham City

14 November 2020 5	Aston Villa	0–1	Birmingham City	Aston
14:30	Hutton   38'	Report	Walker   72' Scofield   76'	Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Rebecca Welch

Aston Villa v Manchester United

5 December 2020 6	Aston Villa	0–2	Manchester United	Walsall
12:30	Arthur   90+3'	Report	Galton   25' Toone   89'	Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Abigail Byrne

Bristol City v Aston Villa

9 December 2020 7	Bristol City	0–4	Aston Villa	Bath
18:30	Bryson   75'	Report	Petzelberger   42', 67',   64' Hayles   57', 75'	Stadium: Twerton Park Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Amy Fearn
Note: Rescheduled from 11 October 2020, following positive a COVID-19 test from a Aston Villa player.

Tottenham Hotspur v Aston Villa

13 December 2020 8	Tottenham Hotspur	3–1	Aston Villa	Canons Park
14:00	Morgan   13' (pen.) Siems   36' (o.g.) Harrop   45+3' Neville   61' Ayane   63'	Report	Weiß   12' Hanssen   24'	Stadium: The Hive Attendance: Sarah Garratt

West Ham United v Aston Villa

20 December 2020	West Ham United	P–P	Aston Villa	Dagenham
14:00				Stadium: Victoria Road
Note: Postponed following positive COVID-19 tests at the West Ham training ground^[7]

Aston Villa v Arsenal

10 January 2021	Aston Villa	P–P	Arsenal	Walsall
14:00				Stadium: Bescot Stadium
Note: Postponed due to a COVID-19 case at Arsenal^[8]

Manchester City v Aston Villa

17 January 2021 9	Manchester City	7–0	Aston Villa	Manchester
12:30	Hemp   2', 38' Scott   17' Stanway   31' Haigh   40' (o.g.) White   45' Kelly   79'	Report		Stadium: Academy Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Amy Fearn

Aston Villa v Reading

23 January 2021 10	Aston Villa	2–2	Reading	Walsall
12:30	N'Dow   30' Iwabuchi   55' Larsen   80' Silva   90+1'	Report	James   3' Rowe   57'	Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Kirsty Downie

Aston Villa v Chelsea

27 January 2021 11	Aston Villa	0–4	Chelsea	Walsall
19:00	Hanssen   45'	Report	Kerr   3' England   35' Harder   68' Eriksson   70' Bright   71'	Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Helen Conley
Note: Rescheduled from 17 October 2020 following positive COVID-19 test by Aston Villa player

Aston Villa v Arsenal

31 January 2021	Aston Villa	P–P	Arsenal	Walsall
14:00				Stadium: Bescot Stadium
Note: Rescheduled from 10 January 2021 following positive COVID-19 case at Arsenal. Postponed due to waterlogged pitch.^[9]

Aston Villa v Tottenham Hotspur

6 February 2021 12	Aston Villa	1–0	Tottenham Hotspur	Walsall
12:30	Iwabuchi   12' N'Dow   90+11'	Report	Mikalsen   67' Kennedy   85'	Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Elizabeth Simms

Birmingham City v Aston Villa

10 February 2021	Birmingham City	P–P	Aston Villa	Solihull
18:00				Stadium: Damson Park
Note: Postponed due to frozen pitch^[10]

Aston Villa v Arsenal

14 February 2021	Aston Villa	P–P	Arsenal	Walsall
14:00				Stadium: Bescot Stadium
Note: Rescheduled from 31 January 2021 due to waterlogged pitch. Postponed due to frozen pitch.^[11]

Aston Villa v Arsenal

28 February 2021 13	Aston Villa	0–4	Arsenal	Walsall
14:00	Hanssen   85'	Report	Miedema   58' Nobbs   67' McCabe   73' Evans   88'	Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Lisa Benn
Note: Rescheduled from 14 February 2021 due to frozen pitch

Manchester United v Aston Villa

7 March 2021 14	Manchester United	3–0	Aston Villa	Leigh
12:00	Hanson   27' Sigsworth   43' Staniforth   45' Zelem   73'	Report	N'Dow   71'	Stadium: Leigh Sports Village Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Helen Conley

Aston Villa v Brighton & Hove Albion

17 March 2021 15	Aston Villa	0–2	Brighton & Hove Albion	Walsall
19:30	Arthur   45+3' Hutton   65' Weiß   80'	Report	Whelan   21' Kaagman   81' (pen.)	Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Helen Conley

Chelsea v Aston Villa

28 March 2021 16	Chelsea	2–0	Aston Villa	Kingston upon Thames
14:30	Kerr   24', 57'	Report	McLoughlin   75'	Stadium: Kingsmeadow Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Sarah Garratt

Everton v Aston Villa

4 April 2021 17	Everton	3–1	Aston Villa	Liverpool
13:00	Graham   36' Christiansen   64' (pen.) Magill   78'	Report	Hutton   45' Hanssen   67' Ale   75' Arthur   83',   90+4'	Stadium: Walton Hall Park Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Stacey Pearson

West Ham United v Aston Villa

20 April 2021 18	West Ham United	0–0	Aston Villa	Dagenham
18:00	Vetterlein   23' Cissoko   57'	Report	N'Dow   27' Gregory   62' Hutton   90+3' Ale   90+5'	Stadium: Victoria Road Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Amy Fearn
Note: Rescheduled from 20 December 2020 following positive COVID-19 tests at the West Ham training ground

Aston Villa v Bristol City

24 April 2021 19	Aston Villa	2–2	Bristol City	Walsall
12:30	Sargeant   3' (o.g.) N'Dow   15' Haigh   35' Asante   69'	Report	Evans   37' Bryson   74' Mastrantonio   90+5'	Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Emily Heaslip

Birmingham City v Aston Villa

28 April 2021 20	Birmingham City	1–1	Aston Villa	Solihull
18:00	Kelly   33' Mayling   40' Sarri   90+6'	Report	Gregory   28' Hutton   42' Silva   90+4'	Stadium: Damson Park Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Jane Simms
Note: Rescheduled from 10 February 2021 due to frozen pitch

Aston Villa v West Ham United

2 May 2021 21	Aston Villa	0–0	West Ham United	Walsall
12:30	Iwabuchi   60'	Report		Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Rebecca Welch

Arsenal v Aston Villa

9 May 2021 22	Arsenal	0–0	Aston Villa	Borehamwood
14:30		Report		Stadium: Meadow Park Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Abigail Byrne

League table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
8	Tottenham Hotspur	22	5	5	12	18	41	−23	20
9	West Ham United	22	3	6	13	21	39	−18	15
10	Aston Villa	22	3	6	13	15	47	−32	15
11	Birmingham City	22	3	6	13	15	44	−29	14^[a]
12	Bristol City (R)	22	2	6	14	18	72	−54	12	Relegation to the Championship

Source: FA WSL
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored.
(R) Relegated
Notes:

1. On 7 May 2021, Birmingham City were deducted one point for fielding an ineligible player in a draw against Reading on 25 April 2021.^[12]

Women's FA Cup

Main article: 2020–21 Women's FA Cup

As a member of the top two tiers, Aston Villa will enter the FA Cup in the fourth round proper. Originally scheduled to take place on 31 January 2021, it was delayed due to COVID-19 restrictions.^[13][14]

Manchester City v Aston Villa

17 April 2021 Fourth round	Manchester City	8–0	Aston Villa	Manchester
13:00	Kelly   16', 41', 84' White   34' Beckie   50' Stanway   59' Lavelle   72' Mewis   90'	Report		Stadium: Academy Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors

FA Women's League Cup

Main article: 2020–21 FA Women's League Cup

Group stage

Aston Villa v Sheffield United

7 October 2020 Group stage	Aston Villa	1–0	Sheffield United	Walsall
19:30	Hutton   38' (pen.)	Report		Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Elizabeth Simms

Coventry United v Aston Villa

10 November 2020 Group stage	Coventry United	0–9	Aston Villa	Coventry
19:45	Hughes   61' Gauntlett   80'	Report	Hanssen   7', 11', 28' Syme   19' Follis   50' (pen.) Silva   56', 90+4' Hutton   65' Hayles   71', 75'	Stadium: Butts Park Arena Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Amy Fearn
Note: Rescheduled from 3 November following positive COVID-19 cases in Coventry squad^[15]

Durham v Aston Villa

19 November 2020 Group stage	Durham	1–1 (2–4 p)	Aston Villa	Durham
19:45	Roberts   4'	Report	Follis   73' Arthur   90'	Stadium: Maiden Castle Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Christiana Hattersley
	Penalties
	Wilson   Hepple   Lambert   Briggs		Follis   Hanssen   Siems   Larsen   Haigh

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	WPEN	LPEN	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		AST	DUR	SHU	COV
1	Aston Villa	3	2	1	0	0	11	1	+10	8	Advanced to knock-out stage		—	—	1–0	—
2	Durham	3	2	0	1	0	12	3	+9	7	Possible knock-out stage based on ranking		1–1	—	—	5–2
3	Sheffield United	3	1	0	0	2	4	7	−3	3			—	0–6	—	—
4	Coventry United	3	0	0	0	3	2	18	−16	0			0–9	—	0–4	—

Source: thefa.com
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record

Knockout stage

Bristol City v Aston Villa

13 January 2021 Quarter-final	Bristol City	2–1	Aston Villa	Bath
19:30	Salmon   55', 58'	Report	Larsen   86'	Stadium: Twerton Park Attendance: Behind-closed-doors Referee: Robert Massey-Ellis

Squad statistics

Appearances

As of 9 May 2021

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

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		FA WSL		FA Cup		League Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	ENG	Sian Rodgers	4	0	1	0	1	0	2	0
3	DF	ENG	Asmita Ale	23	0	16+2	0	1	0	4	0
4	DF	ENG	Ella Franklin-Fraiture	11	0	10	0	0	0	1	0
5	DF	ENG	Elisha N'Dow	25	0	16+4	0	1	0	3+1	0
6	DF	ENG	Anita Asante	23	1	19	1	0	0	3+1	0
7	MF	ENG	Emma Follis	19	2	9+6	0	0	0	2+2	2
8	MF	SCO	Chloe Arthur	19	1	15+2	1	0	0	1+1	0
9	FW	DEN	Stine Larsen	20	2	16+1	1	0+1	0	0+2	1
10	MF	GER	Ramona Petzelberger	13	3	9+2	3	0	0	1+1	0
11	MF	ENG	Amy West	10	0	2+4	0	1	0	3	0
12	FW	ENG	Jodie Hutton	19	2	12+5	1	0	0	1+1	1
13	DF	GER	Caroline Siems	17	0	10+3	0	1	0	3	0
14	MF	ENG	Emily Syme	20	1	1+14	0	1	0	4	1
15	DF	ENG	Natalie Haigh	22	1	18	1	1	0	2+1	0
16	DF	ENG	Olivia McLoughlin	9	0	7+1	0	1	0	0	0
17	FW	ENG	Sophie Haywood	10	0	3+5	0	0	0	1+1	0
18	MF	ENG	Freya Gregory	10	1	4+5	1	1	0	0	0
19	FW	POR	Diana Silva	19	3	4+10	1	1	0	4	2
20	FW	JPN	Mana Iwabuchi	14	2	11+2	2	0	0	0+1	0
21	MF	GER	Marisa Ewers	22	0	16+3	0	0	0	2+1	0
22	FW	ENG	Shania Hayles	23	4	13+6	2	1	0	2+1	2
23	MF	NED	Nadine Hanssen	21	4	9+7	1	0+1	0	3+1	3
27	GK	ENG	Charlotte Clarke	1	0	0	0	0	0	0+1	0
29	GK	GER	Lisa Weiß	23	0	21	0	0	0	2	0

Transfers

Transfers in

Date	Position	Nationality	Name	From	Ref.
2 July 2020	MF		Chloe Arthur	Birmingham City	^[16]
4 July 2020	DF		Freya Gregory	Birmingham City	^[17]
6 July 2020	DF		Anita Asante	Chelsea	^[18]
15 July 2020	FW		Diana Silva	Sporting CP	^[19]
23 July 2020	GK		Lisa Weiß	Olympique Lyon	^[20]
29 July 2020	DF		Caroline Siems	Turbine Potsdam	^[21]
	MF		Ramona Petzelberger	SGS Essen	^[22]
30 July 2020	FW		Stine Larsen	FC Fleury 91	^[23]
5 October 2020	GK		Charlotte Clarke^[a]	Derby County	^[24]
21 December 2020	FW		Mana Iwabuchi	INAC Kobe Leonessa	^[25]

1. Dual registration with Derby County

Transfers out

Date	Position	Nationality	Name	To	Ref.
11 June 2020	DF		Jade Richards	Blackburn Rovers	^[26]^[27]
	FW		Kerri Welsh		^[26]
	MF		Alice Hassall	Coventry United	^[26]^[28]
	MF		Phoebe Warner	Coventry United	^[26]^[29]
	FW		Melissa Johnson	Sheffield United	^[26]^[30]
	DF		Charlotte Greengrass	Nottingham Forest	^[26]^[31]
	MF		Sophie Maierhofer	MSV Duisburg	^[26]^[32]
	GK		Daniela Kosinska	Stoke City	^[26]

References

1. Association, The Football. "Chelsea Women awarded Barclays FA WSL title and Aston Villa win Women's Championship". www.thefa.com.
2. "Aston Villa Women to play home games at Walsall's Banks's Stadium". BBC Sport. 12 June 2020.
3. "Marcus Bignot joins Aston Villa Women as Interim Manager". Aston Villa Football Club.
4. "Aston Villa Women appoint Marcus Bignot as interim manager; Gemma Davies remains as head coach". Sky Sports.
5. "Women's Team". www.avfc.co.uk.
6. "Two Villa games off after Covid-19 test". BBC Sport.
7. "West Ham United postpones U18s, U23s and women's fixtures". www.whufc.com.
8. "Saturday's WSL games off over Covid cases". BBC Sport.
9. "Arsenal fixture postponed for a second time". Aston Villa Football Club.
10. "Second City Derby: Postponed". Birmingham City Football Club.
11. "Villa-Arsenal WSL game frozen off". BBC Sport.
12. . Birmingham City Football Club. Archived from the original on 23 June 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
13. "The Women's FA Cup Season 2020–21 List of Exemptions" (PDF). thefa.com. The Football Association. 10 August 2020.
14. "Women's FA Cup to remain suspended during coronavirus lockdown". Sky Sports.
15. "Aston Villa and Coventry United clash is off". www.newschain.uk.
16. "Chloë Arthur signs for Villa Women". www.avfc.co.uk.
17. "Freya Gregory joins Aston Villa". Freya Gregory. 4 July 2020. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
18. "Anita Asante signs for Villa Women". www.avfc.co.uk.
19. "Diana Silva signs for Villa Women". www.avfc.co.uk.
20. "Lisa Weiß signs for Villa Women". www.avfc.co.uk.
21. "Caro Siems signs for Villa Women". www.avfc.co.uk.
22. "Ramona Petzelberger signs for Villa Women". www.avfc.co.uk.
23. "Stine Larsen signs for Villa Women". www.avfc.co.uk.
24. "England Under-21 international goalkeeper signs dual registration terms with Aston Villa". FAWSL Full-Time. 5 October 2020.
25. "Villa sign Japan captain Iwabuchi". BBC Sport.
26. "Villa Women announce player departures". www.avfc.co.uk. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
27. "Rovers complete Richards deal". www.rovers.co.uk.
28. "Alice Hassall joins Coventry United". Coventry United LFC. 27 July 2020. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
29. "Phoebe Warner joins Coventry United". Coventry United LFC. 29 July 2020. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
30. "Mel Johnson signs". www.sufc.co.uk.
31. "Greengrass becomes newest arrival". www.nottinghamforest.co.uk.
32. Presseabteilung, MSV Duisburg. ""Werden uns weiterhelfen": Neuzugänge für die ZebraFrauen". MSV Duisburg.

External links

• AVFC Women official website