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WSL: Five things we learned from the opening weekend of the Women's Super League

Millie Bright hugging Lauren James after she scored for ChelseaImage source, Getty Images

It's back! The WSL season kicked off on Sunday, with all twelve teams back in action.

After a huge summer for international women's football, which saw the Lionesses getting through to their first World Cup final, it was time for attention to turn back to domestic matters.

The opening match certainly didn't disappoint - with plenty of goals, late comebacks and even records being broken!

Here's five things we learned from the opening weekend.

Who do you think will win the WSL title and who's your favourite player? Let us know in the comments below!

Record WSL crowd

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What a way to start the opening weekend of the new season!

A new record was set as 54,115 fans turned out to see Arsenal take on Liverpool at the Emirates - the biggest crowd in the history of the Women's Super League - ever!

It smashed the previous record set last September, when 47,367 people watched Arsenal v Tottenham at the Emirates Stadium.

However, it was the away fans who came away celebrating as Miri Taylor's second-half strike gave Liverpool a shock 1-0 victory.

Chelsea's title defence

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Chelsea are the reigning league champions and have been a dominant force in the WSL, securing six out of the last seven WSL titles.

And they began their title defence with a winning start, with a 2-1 victory over Tottenham - newcomer Mia Fishel scored on her debut before Lauren James doubled Chelsea's lead just after half time.

And there was more good news for Chelsea too, as midfielder Fran Kirby came on as a substitute during the game to make her first appearance since February, having missed the World Cup through injury.

New WSL signings

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In fact, it wasn't only Mia Fishel who impressed on her debut for her new club.

It was a great weekend for many of the WSL's summer signings, with plenty of goals being netted by debutants.

Jill Roord scored to help 10-player Manchester City to a 2-0 victory over West Ham.

And three new signings scored for Leicester City as they beat newly promoted Bristol City 4-2 at Ashton Gate.

Villa shirt controversy

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Recently there's been a lot of talk about this season's Aston Villa shirts.

Villa's male players have said the shirts are uncomfortable because they retain too much sweat, and as a result they have even been changing colour in games.

In the build-up to the WSL match, several players were said to be "dreading" wearing the shirt but in the end they didn't appear to cause much of a problem and players didn't express concerns at full-time.

Aston Villa captain Rachel Corsie said players chose to wear the much-criticised shirt and the club had been "really supportive."

Late drama

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There's nothing like a late winner to add drama to a game!

And that's exactly what happened at Villa Park, as Manchester United came from behind to beat 10-player Aston Villa.

The game looked to be heading for a 1-1 draw, until substitute Rachel Williams headed in Nikita Parris' cross in stoppage time, earning the visitors all three points.

And there was good news for Brighton fans too, as Elisabeth Terland scored twice to help the Seagulls get their Women's Super League season off to a winning start with a 2-1 win against Everton.