2022–23 FA Women's League Cup
Football tournament season
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2022–23 FA Women's League Cup was the twelfth edition of the Women's Super League and Women's Championship's league cup competition. It was sponsored by Continental AG, who have sponsored the competition since its creation in 2011, and was officially known as the FA Women's Continental Tyres League Cup[1] for sponsorship reasons. All 24 teams from the WSL and Championship took part in the competition. Manchester City were the defending champions.[2]
Format
The competition kept the same format as the previous season, starting with a group stage split regionally. Teams competing in the UEFA Women's Champions League group stage were exempt from the League Cup group stage, earning a provisional bye to the quarter-finals. As a result, the initial group stage draw made on 9 August 2022 featured 21 of the 24 teams: one Northern group had five teams drawn into it with the remaining Northern group and all three Southern groups initially featuring four teams each. The three teams excluded from the draw were Chelsea, who automatically entered the Champions League group stage and therefore joined the League Cup at the quarter-final stage, and Manchester City and Arsenal who were taking part in the Champions League qualifying rounds. Should either team be eliminated during qualification, they would enter the League Cup group stage and be drawn into an existing group of four in their geographical region.[3] Manchester City were eliminated from the Champions League in the first qualifying round and were therefore placed in Group B as the only Northern group with four teams.
The first place team in each of the five groups will qualify for the knock-out stage. Because Manchester City failed to progress from Champions League qualifying, one best-placed runner-up will also progress to make up eight teams in the quarter-finals.
Group stage
Group A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | WPEN | LPEN | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | AST | MUN | DUR | EVE | SHU | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aston Villa | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 9 | Advanced to knock-out stage | — | 1–1 | 1–0 | – | – | |
| 2 | Manchester United | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 5 | +6 | 8 | Possible knock-out stage based on ranking | – | — | – | 4–2 | 4–0 | |
| 3 | Durham | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 7 | – | 2–2 | — | – | 3–3 | ||
| 4 | Everton | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 1–1 | – | 0–1 | — | – | ||
| 5 | Sheffield United | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 12 | −8 | 1 | 1–2 | – | – | 3–0 | — |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record
| Aston Villa | 1–0 | Durham |
|---|---|---|
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Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | WPEN | LPEN | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | MCI | LIV | LEI | SUN | BLB | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester City | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | +12 | 12 | Advanced to knock-out stage | — | – | – | 3–0 | 6–0 | |
| 2 | Liverpool | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 9 | Possible knock-out stage based on ranking | 0–2 | — | – | – | 1–0 | |
| 3 | Leicester City | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 5 | +3 | 6 | – | 0–4 | — | – | – | ||
| 4 | Sunderland | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 | −9 | 0 | — | 0–1 | 0–5 | — | – | ||
| 5 | Blackburn Rovers | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | −10 | 0 | – | – | 0–3 | C–C | — |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record
| Sunderland | 0–1 | Liverpool |
|---|---|---|
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| Blackburn Rovers | Cancelled | Sunderland |
|---|---|---|
Group C
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | WPEN | LPEN | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | WHU | BHA | LCL | BIR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Ham United | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 6 | Advanced to knock-out stage | — | – | – | 2–0 | |
| 2 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 5 | Possible knock-out stage based on ranking | 0–0 | — | – | – | |
| 3 | London City Lionesses | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 2–2 | 1–2 | — | – | ||
| 4 | Birmingham City | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 3 | – | 3–2 | 1–2 | — |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record
| London City Lionesses | 2–2 | West Ham United |
|---|---|---|
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| Penalties | ||
| 9–10 | ||
| London City Lionesses | 1–2 | Brighton & Hove Albion |
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| West Ham United | 2–0 | Birmingham City |
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| Birmingham City | 1–2 | London City Lionesses |
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Group D
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | WPEN | LPEN | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | BRI | LEW | CHA | CRY | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bristol City | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 6 | Advanced to knock-out stage | — | – | – | 4–0 | |
| 2 | Lewes | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 6 | Possible knock-out stage based on ranking | 0–1 | — | 2–0 | – | |
| 3 | Charlton Athletic | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 6 | 2–1 | – | — | 2–0 | ||
| 4 | Crystal Palace | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 10 | −9 | 0 | – | 1–4 | – | — |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record
| Lewes | 2–0 | Charlton Athletic |
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| Charlton Athletic | 2–1 | Bristol City |
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| Charlton Athletic | 2–0 | Crystal Palace |
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Group E
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | WPEN | LPEN | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | TOT | REA | COV | SOU | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tottenham Hotspur | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2 | +6 | 9 | Advanced to knock-out stage | — | – | 5–1 | – | |
| 2 | Reading | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 2 | +6 | 6 | Possible knock-out stage based on ranking | 1–2 | — | – | – | |
| 3 | Coventry United | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 9 | −6 | 3 | – | 0–4 | — | 2–0 | ||
| 4 | Southampton | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | −6 | 0 | 0–1 | 0–3 | – | — |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored; 4) Number of wins; 5) Head-to-head record
| Reading | 1–2 | Tottenham Hotspur |
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| Coventry United | 2–0 | Southampton |
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| Southampton | 0–3 | Reading |
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| Tottenham Hotspur | 5–1 | Coventry United |
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| Coventry United | 0–4 | Reading |
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Ranking of second-placed teams
Due to Manchester City's failure to progress from Champions League qualifying, they entered the League Cup group stage. With only two teams receiving byes to the League Cup quarter-finals, the best-placed runner-up team progressed with the five group winners to make up the final eight. With the three Southern groups containing one fewer team than the two Northern groups, the ranking to determine which second-placed team progressed was calculated on a points-per-game basis.
| Pos | Grp | Team | Pld | W | WPEN | LPEN | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | PPG | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | B | Liverpool | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 9 | 2.25 | Advanced to knock-out stage |
| 2 | A | Manchester United | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 5 | +6 | 8 | 2.00 | |
| 3 | E | Reading | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 2 | +6 | 6 | 2.00 | |
| 4 | C | Brighton & Hove Albion | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 6 | 2.00 | |
| 5 | D | Lewes | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 6 | 2.00 |
Knock-out stage
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | |||||||||||
| Arsenal | 3 | ||||||||||||
| Aston Villa | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Arsenal | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Manchester City | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Bristol City | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Manchester City | 6 | ||||||||||||
| Arsenal | 3 | ||||||||||||
| Chelsea | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Liverpool | 0 | ||||||||||||
| West Ham United | 1 | ||||||||||||
| West Ham United | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Chelsea | 7 | ||||||||||||
| Tottenham Hotspur | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Chelsea | 3 | ||||||||||||
Quarter-finals
Chelsea and Arsenal entered the League Cup at the quarter-final stage, having been exempt from the group stage due to their participation in the Champions League group stage.
Semi-finals
| Arsenal | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | Manchester City |
|---|---|---|
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Final
On 5 December 2022, it was announced that the 2023 FA Women's League Cup Final would be held at Selhurst Park, the home of Crystal Palace, for the first time. The final took place on 5 March 2023.[42]
Top goalscorers
| Rank[43] | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Sam Kerr |
Chelsea | 6 |
| 2 | Mary Fowler |
Manchester City | 4 |
| Hayley Raso |
Manchester City | ||
| 4 |  Natasha Dowie |
Reading | 3 |
 Abi Harrison |
Bristol City | ||
| Sarah Ewens |
London City Lionesses | ||
 Julie Blakstad |
Manchester City | ||
| Vilde Bøe Risa |
Manchester United | ||
 Dagny Brynjarsdóttir |
West Ham United | ||
| 10 | 16 players | 2 | |