Crystal Palace Women achieve the unexpected as WSL prepares for closest season thanks to Premier League symmetry

Crystal Palace have been confirmed as the WSL’s latest addition ahead of the 2024/25 season.

The Eagles secured promotion to the WSL after a 0-0 draw on the final day of the Women’s Championship season.

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This is a remarkable achievement given that at the start of the season no one expected Palace to be in contention for promotion.

They had finished a respectable, but not overwhelming, fifth place in the table the previous season.

Manager Laura Kaminski told talkSPORT’s Women’s Football Show it had been something of a blessing in disguise.

She said: “I think it has helped us because there are clubs coming to the end of three or two year projects where their ambitions are now set, and all eyes are on there in terms of rise in WSL.”

She added: “When I first walked in the door, for me it was just about recruiting good people – the staff and the players. So that was really the basis of my job. And that That’s how it all started. And I knew I had to act quickly. But there was no pressure to do what we did.

Palace have been involved in an extremely tight race for promotion to the Women’s Championship which, at one point, saw Sunderland, Charlton and Southampton rallying with a chance of reaching the WSL.

But with all four competing teams having made errors at different times of the season, the final games became more crucial than ever and it was Palace who were best able to keep their composure.

Asked when she started to believe promotion to the WSL might be a realistic possibility for Palace, Kaminski replied: “I’ll be honest and say never.

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“I think everyone was saying it more than me. I’ll tell you one thing: I haven’t looked at the table once all year. Because the tables are irrelevant, until that you get to the end of things. So there was no point in me looking at the table, it would just put me in a difficult situation.”

She added: “I focused on us all year, on our side, on our players rather than on the opposition, which I think took a lot of pressure off the group. And I said to the group time and time again, the only pressure, week after week, is to perform – no points.

His approach has undoubtedly paid off as Palace take their place in the WSL next season.

Their promotion means that – provided Everton avoids relegation this season and Leicester achieves promotion to the Premier League – whenever in the WSL next season there will be a Premier League counterpart.

This will likely make the relegation battle in the WSL more competitive than ever given that for the past four seasons the relegated team has not had an equivalent men’s team in the Premier League.

This is a factor that has often contributed greatly to their eventual WSL demotion.

Last season, former Reading manager Kelly Chambers explained that the resulting lack of spending power meant teams were often unable to compete against teams who could draw on financial resources.

Chambers explained how other struggling clubs, like Tottenham and Leicester, were able to buy players like Bethany England and Janina Leitzig to save themselves in a way that Reading’s budget simply didn’t allow.

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But Palace Women will have the support of their Premier League side, which Kaminski believes presents a huge advantage for the women’s team.

She said: “I think ours is a bit different to other clubs because some of the Premier League clubs are in a great place and are building facilities specifically for women. Great, you know, that’s the way the game is meant to be.

“But at Palace we’re all integrated. And actually it’s been great this year, because there’s a real sort of buzz around a hive of workplaces for under-8s, for under-8s 14 years, you know, the boys in the In the first women’s team, everything is collectively together and I think that has created a great sort of balance and work ethic around the building.

“It’s all very integrated. – I’m watching the boys training, we’re all in the office with the Under-21 staff, with the Academy, the Boys’ Academy. And now the Girls’ Academy has been developed.”

This bodes well for Palace – particularly after Bristol City Women were relegated from the WSL after just one season, failing to gain any momentum.

Kaminski added: “I just think the integration really helped the culture and the environment of the club because it helped me absorb the club, whereas if I had been separated it wouldn’t might not have worked so well So maybe I capitalized on that, and kind of thrown into each other.

“It’s actually a great working environment. And it helps me share my knowledge and thoughts. We’re all invested in each other’s performances and results. I think it helps broaden the club’s ethos and to disseminate it in all departments.”

You can follow talkSPORT’s women’s football show on Mondays from 7 p.m. on talkSPORT 2.