DERBY DAYS. Why do local derbies – like Villa v Brum – set pulses racing?

There’s nothing quite like a local derby. The bragging rights are off the scale. The workplace banter is louder. The hubris is way higher. The half and half scarves are… a mystery.

On any given Sunday (or Saturday) there’s at least one London derby – with a bumper seven WSL clubs from the capital this season, meaning 12 local derbies for each team. And that’s just league games. Plus we’ve had endless bitter Manchester and Merseyside derbies for years.

But perhaps the biggest one of all is back – the Second City Derby – Aston Villa v Birmingham City. The Villans v the Bluenoses. And to say it’s eagerly awaited is a massive understatement.

We speak to a bumper ELEVEN head coaches about the unique challenges and thrills of Derby Days.  

To get a measure of the Second City Derby, we speak to head coaches Brian Sorensen of Villa and Amy Merricks of Birmingham, both of whom definitely know the value of a derby win. The near neighbours have faced each other in the Subway Cup twice in the 12 months, and both times it’s been level at 90 minutes, and had to go to penalties to separate the two deadly rivals.  

After we hear from both of them, we also get a flavour of what it means to ten head coaches* across the rest of the league – some of whom have experienced local derbies as players and in different leagues, including the Scottish Women’s Premier League. (*Apart from Brighton, who sadly have no local mates beside the seaside, or even around Crawley.)

As Man United head coach Eva Olid said after their fiercely fought draw with City: “It is for these nights we are in football.”

AMY MERRICKS, BIRMINGHAM CITY

Having now experienced two local derbies against Aston Villa in the Subway Cup, Amy Merricks knows how vital and exciting they can be – for the club and especially the fans. And now her Birmingham City Bluenoses make the short trip to Villa for their highly anticipated WSL match.

I wonder what’s so special about the Second City Derby, what makes it different?

If you look at any derby, it becomes about more than just the game of football.

It becomes about pride.

As a club, it becomes about the fans, what they want to see in the game.

I was really pleased with our second half performance against Aston Villa.

I thought we were very good.

I thought we responded very well.

I thought we took the game to them, and I thought we dominated that game with everything.

I was so proud of the way that the team put themselves out there.

We pressed high, we suffocated their play, and we created some really good efforts.

You could really see the passion of all the players, but I must say, we try and play every game like that.

You have to play every game as a derby.

As an elite athlete, you go into every game willing to give everything.

To cut to the chase, we’ve got more derbies coming.

And when I first joined Birmingham City, what was really apparent to me was how important that derby is to our fan base.

So, it’s making sure that we’re on the front foot and we display the values that everyone wants.

As a Birmingham City side, it’s about the city, it’s about the community, and it’s most importantly about our fans, and reflecting that in the display.

BRIAN SORENSEN, ASTON VILLA

Danish head coach Brian Sorensen has four seasons of Merseyside derbies to draw on, having managed Everton against Liverpool time and time again – and with some success down the years. And now he’s in charge at Aston Villa he is rubbing his hands with glee at the prospect of the Second City Derby.

First, I was wondering what makes a local derby different from other games?

Not in the way you prepare the teams, but maybe just on the day there’s extra focus and intensity because, at the end of the day, that’s the game you don’t want to lose.

And to have the bragging rights. So there’s a little more on the line.

All derby games have their own life. I played a lot of derbies. I liked to beat Liverpool. So that’s a good thing.

But otherwise, I think at the end of the day, you just need to make sure you get your nerves in the right moment, find the right intensity with the team and then prepare the same way.

Then hopefully you end up on top.

Do you have a favourite derby game memory?

I would say maybe the first one [for Everton] at Anfield – 25,000, I think it was there, and we beat them 3-0. That was a nice experience.

Your cup game was very exciting and went to penalties again, exactly as it did last season. So I wonder why the second city derby is always such a brilliant one.

And I think you had one of the biggest crowds for the Subway Cup in this match?

Yeah, I think it was.

For me, I really enjoyed it.

It was an exciting game.

Of course, I could have done without that last-minute goal they scored, and we need to be better at seeing those minutes out.

End of the day, as I said after the game, the fans got a bit [of value] for the money, with the penalties.

All I thought was it’s a very good night, a good performance, and I was happy with a lot of things.

Yeah, exciting, and I hope the fans also really enjoyed that one, especially because we came out as winners.

We also created enough chances early on to maybe have a bigger lead, and then they threw everything at us at the end, and they got a fair equaliser.

You’ve been involved in loads of derbies before on Merseyside, you and Liverpool going hammer and tongs when you were Everton.

So, what makes the Birmingham one slightly different? What makes it crackle?

I think people are extra excited, there’s a bit of an edge around the game because it’s a derby – and my track record in derbies is quite good.

So long may that long continue.

I haven’t lost one yet.

It’s not that I’m doing anything special.

It’s more the players.

You just need to calm them down and remember it’s like any other game, and we need to do what we can control and focus on that and getting the performance right.

If we do that, we have a good chance of getting results, so I think it’s more about that.

I’m pretty calm in my nature, so maybe that reflects a little bit on them and why we’ve been pretty successful in derbies.

But no, I really enjoyed it.

As you say, the fans were more than 1,500. That was really nice to see.

And Keys Park, the facility, is so great, and it creates this intensity around the game that really gives energy to the players.

It’s really fun to be a part of, and brilliant, and hopefully we can make more of these types of games.

JO POTTER, CRYSTAL PALACE

As a player, Jo Potter was involved in many derbies across London and the Midlands – including games for Birmingham against Villa – and when she moved into management as head coach at Rangers in the SWPL, she got to know the Old Firm Derby, which still rates as one of the fiercest, most partisan fixtures around. Now at Crystal Palace, she’s aware that multiple derbies – including the South London clash with Charlton – are always on the horizon.

What makes derby games different?

I think it’s very unique to have so many teams in London in the league this year, so it’s good for less amount of travelling for us, but it adds a bit of spice for those extra derbies you are getting.

For us it doesn’t really make any difference whether it’s West Ham or Everton; we go into it with the same attitude, same desire.

It’s good for the fans, good for the public to have those close encounters that bring a little bit more to these games.

So it’s important for your Palace fans?

It’s huge. And it’s great for our fans that they can attend more games that are more accessible to them.

Not so much for the for the other teams that are a little bit more northern, but I think it shows the quality of the teams in and around London now, and it’s great for the fans that we can expose them to more games, be closer, to get more fans at the games, and we always want to do that.

We’ve got to win more games and show more opportunities and more performances.

It’s always a Catch 22 to get the fans in to help the players, and we need to produce more performances and wins on the board to get the fans through the door too.

Our fans mean a lot. We have a great following, super loyal fans who are really supportive of myself.

Which I and the players can’t thank them enough for.

We’ve got a really a really nice bunch of fans that we love seeing week in, week out.

What’s your favourite derby game memory?

They don’t come much bigger than the Old Firm in Scotland and I was on the right side of those more times than I wasn’t, so I’m happy about that. Yeah, most of the time I was on the winning side in in the Rangers Celtic battle.

The derbies in Scotland, I don’t think people understand it until they are in it, people can think they know what that looks like and know how that is.

I think it is really important for you to feel those pressurised moments, because for me you had to beat Celtic and that was just the way it was.

Being under those pressures and players felt those pressures, was big for us in our learning and our growth and how to control those emotions and how you manage that moving forward.

I learnt a lot in those moments and the players learnt so much from that as well and we need to remember those and be able to come out winners in cup finals and win trophies.

What about any favourite Derby Day memories from when you were playing?

Through my career at Birmingham we played Villa, and that was always a big game, and I was happy to come out on top of, I think every single time, so I was happy with that one.

I used to love playing against Chelsea with Reading.

I loved the goals actually against Chelsea.

I scored quite a few goals against Chelsea in my career towards the end.

There’s quite a few derbies; it’s a lot more prevalent now with the amount of teams playing and the players that are in the league, the derbies look totally different to maybe what it used to.

There’s a lot more a lot more battles and a lot more derbies that are happening now than potentially, when I was playing it many, many moons ago.

It’s great that there’s a Birmingham derby for the first time in yonks, because that’s proper enmity, isn’t it?

Yeah, I think people probably know it’s one of those.

You look at the North London derby with Arsenal and Spurs, and then you’ve got the Blues Villa.

And the Manchester derby.

We look at a lot of the derbies from what happened through the men’s game, but it’s coming into the women’s game now too, and I think it’s brilliant.

That’s what football’s about, having those battles and those derbies that just might mean a little bit more than the rest.

SONIA BOMPASTOR, CHELSEA

Playing for French sides like Lyon and PSG, Sonia Bompastor experienced few, if any, local derbies, which was the same when she became head coach at Lyon, of course. But now in her third season at Chelsea, she is definitely getting in the swing of things in local London derbies, and has a decent record against the Blues’ rivals.

With a dozen derby games for Chelsea in the league alone this season, I wonder why you think these matches are so different to others, for the fans, for the players, for you?

It brings a different excitement going into these games.

Derbies are always special, you come into the games with a different mindset.

Most of the time, winning duels from the beginning of the game and bringing high intensity is really important.

We want to make sure we are able to do that.

But also, we want to control the game as much as possible when we have the ball.

It’s important that in every element of the game, every element of the performance, we are as strong as possible.

This is your third season in the WSL, and I wonder if you have a favourite derby memory?

Probably my first one at the Emirates when I first came, in my first season.

Just to win at the Emirates was something really special.

Do you enjoy derby matches against your local rivals – like Spurs?

Yeah, I think the atmosphere today was great in the stadium.

They were unbelievable.

It helps when they can see many goals, the quality of football on the pitch.

You need to have two teams to be able to see that.

So yeah, credit to Chelsea, but also to Tottenham.

We really enjoyed it, especially the win at the end and the three points!

More local derbies are coming… and against Spurs I noticed Maika [Hamano] went over and saw her chums from her loan, and with Palace, both Lexi [Potter] and Lola Brown spent time there and had really good seasons. So I wonder how much emotion is around because of those connections?

Yeah, I think you’re right to mention that because when the players spend some time on loan to these clubs, it’s always an emotional moment for them to play against these their teams where they were on loan.

The best way for them to have a smile at the end of the game is for them to get minutes in those games, but also to win the game!

They come into the game with an extra motivation, because they want to perform and they want to show the time they spent in that environment was beneficial for them individually, and helped them to develop as individual players.

So yeah, it’s an extra motivation for them, for sure.

How different is it when you’re trying to gear up your players for a big stadium like Stamford Bridge for a local derby, and then in a tiny one, like Sutton for Palace?

I think you need to embrace that challenge and make sure you focus on what is most important.

For us, the most important is always the pitch, and the environment outside the pitch is sometimes important in the women’s game, but I think we want to focus more on how we can control the game, how we can be ruthless and clinical, and start strong the game, not to give any hope to the opponents.

I think most of my players have experienced a lot of these grounds before.

And I was a player before, and earlier in my career as a head coach, I also experienced some of these grounds.

I remember when we played the Champions League Final in 2011 in Fulham, and that will stay in my memory forever.

So it’s nice to be playing games in really typical stadiums in England.

That’s part of the history.

With near neighbours Crystal Palace and their coach Jo Potter, it feels like they’ve made huge progress since you played them last season in the cup.

Yeah, I think she’s a good coach; the way she tries to make her team play.

As you just mentioned from last season, they improved, and I think the results they are getting right now in the league are probably not the ones they want.

But when you analyse the performances, it doesn’t always reflect the results.

So again, as I said in this league, every game is difficult, the league is competitive.

Crystal Palace is a team can easily hurt us on some days, if we are not doing the right thing, if we are not playing with our quality, and if we are not bringing the right mindset.

So for us, it’s making sure we find the right balance by respecting them, but also coming into the game with the quality we have in the squad and being able to start strong and have a good game.

MARTIN HO, SPURS

As assistant coach at Everton and Man United, Martin Ho experienced multiple local derbies in the North West. And as head coach at Brann, he had the Western Derby against Viking FK in Norway. But since joining Tottenham Hotspur in 2025, Ho has seen non-stop derbies, always lurking just around the corner, and not only in the WSL, but also in the Subway Cup.

Derby games, they seem endless, and you’ve had mixed results so far.

But what makes a derby game so special, so different, not just for you, but for the fans and the players?

Yeah, I think for the wider perspective, for Spurs supporters, it’s more the edge, the feeling, the kind of adrenaline rush you get, the bragging rights within London.

As you said, there seems to be a lot of London derbies at the moment, wherever they are.

And we just need to make sure that we don’t play to that occasion, we need to play the game.

We need to come away from playing occasions, and we need to gain that experience and that understanding, with having young players in the squad.

They need to experience this, but they also need to play the game because this experience for them will be invaluable.

What about a player like Vic Pelova [against Arsenal]? For her this is probably the biggest game.

Yeah, I know that she will have a different motivation, a different energy.

Her enthusiasm will be different in the game.

She’ll want to make a point.

I’ve had those conversations with Vic (above), and she needs to just play her own game.

The more you try and force the occasion, you probably become unstuck within a game.

I want her just to show the quality she’s been showing, a creativeness in mid- to attacking third, the ability to score, the ability to get behind teams.

And the more she does that, you prove a point in a footballing way.

You don’t need to prove a point by arrogance or ego.

You need to do it with performance.

And she has the qualities to do so.

But I know she’ll have the bit between her teeth.

When you look back at all the derby matches you’ve been involved with – because you were on Merseyside and Manchester too – do you have a favourite Derby Day memory?

I think the Arsenal one at Brisbane Road where we drew.

Because there was so much pressure going into that game… a lot of talk about certain aspects, and I think we went in with a confidence and a belief.

I thought first half was really good for us; second half they were better.

But I thought the way we would still pressure second half was a credit to the group, and then we come out of the game with the point.

I thought it was deserved.

So probably that’s the biggest memory, more because of the turnout, the fans, the amount of people that were there.

Away fans in one end, home fans all around the rest of the stadium.

It’s just a really nice feeling when you’ve got a full stadium like that, and that was probably my real first experience of a London derby versus Arsenal.

KAREN HILLS, CHARLTON

Having played and coached at a handful of different London clubs, Karen Hills is very familiar with a capital derby. She’s also unusual in getting not one, but two teams – Spurs and Charlton –promoted to the WSL. Her team may be up against it in the league this season, but there’s always a chance to take points off near neighbours. And she has plenty of good derby memories from the past to look back on.

What’s your favourite derby game memory from your managerial or playing career?

Me personally, I think probably the Arsenal games were probably the highlight, when you get to play them twice, home and away.

They always came down to small margins and I’ll always remember those games as a highlight for the calendar. Chelsea weren’t even a team in the top division at the time.

I think derbies in women’s football are a new thing; every game is just as important whether you are travelling up north or playing a team in London.

The rivalry is still there, especially with the fans, but from a player point of view it’s another game we need to try perform in.

What about playing your South London rivals, Palace?

Yeah, obviously a London derby. There’s a lot of history between us. I know a lot of their players as well.

And I think we’re going to have some good support. It’s not a million miles away for our fans, so I’m hoping that there’ll be a nice crowd there.

EDER MAESTRE, LONDON CITY LIONESSES

As this is only Eder Maestre’s second head coach position, and his previous one was at Tenerife, in the Canary Islands (no local derbies there), he’s been thrown in the deep end for multiple local derbies at London City. Last season he experienced a handful of league derbies, and this season it’s a dozen in the WSL alone, plus Subway Cup ties on top. But he’s definitely up for the fight!

You’ve played West Ham a few times, plus Charlton and Spurs, and you play Palace twice, then Arsenal, then Chelsea. So I wonder what special quality you get from local derbies because there’s so many this season?

Having these derbies adds some spice to this kind of game.

So the history that the club is creating… start making the first steps, trying to create that history behind a derby is always good for the fan engagement. And trying to add that extra motivation.

Yeah, I think it’s one of the best things to be in London due to all the teams in the city, you can have a lot of games with this extra motivation, so it’s very nice.

When you’ve got local derbies, maybe English players like Izzy [Goodwin], Freya [Godfrey], Poppy [Pattinson] and Mary [Earps] – have that more of that enmity, that real rivalry?

Maybe yes.

I think it can be an extra motivation in these cases, but I think all the team is very committed to understand how important are these games.

So it’s not just because of the English background.

I think all the team, all the people here, know how important is a strong showing in that kind of game.

Yeah, because we are footballers, we know the importance of that kind of derby.

I hope they can connect with that extra energy, but all the players understand how important these games are.

When you look back at last season and this, what is your favourite moment in a local derby?

Ooh, I don’t know because I think I have a very good experience here…

But the other day against Tottenham [winning 6-1 away], was something special due to the result we reached and the performance overall.

This kind of result that can help us to keep pushing: it’s about reinforcing all the things that we are doing and showing.

I think it’s the top scoring in the club’s history, so it’s something special as well.

I spoke to Jana Fernandez after the Spurs match, and she described it as the perfect performance. So I wonder if that’s as close as you’ve come to making London City perfect?

I don’t know. I hope we can still reach even higher standards.

But you know, it takes time.

It’s not about a linear evolution process.

But as I’ve mentioned, other teams are training as well to improve.

So it’s a road, so I don’t know if we are gonna be able to perform in all the games as we performed against Tottenham.

We need to be humble and understand that these high standards are there, so it’s a clue… to keep pushing and showing us that if we are committed enough, we can have that kind of performance.

RENÉE SLEGERS, ARSENAL

Having played and coached in Sweden, Renée Slegers had already experienced heated local rivalries. But since she became interim and then head coach at Arsenal two seasons ago, the derby days have come fast and furious. With six other London teams now in the WSL, there are local derbies every other week… but for Arsenal the biggest of all are still against Chelsea, and of course, Spurs, in the North London Derby.

You’ve already played Palace and Chelsea… and now Spurs. Then you’ve got London City, Charlton, and West Ham. I wonder if all these London derbies generate more excitement, or is there less because there’s so many of them?

This [North London Derby] is the biggest game of the season for certain fans, maybe even for players and staff at the club.

So this is a special one, absolutely.

When you look back at the London derbies you’ve been involved with, is there one particularly great memory that stands out for you?

The one that stands out, I think last year was amazing at the Emirates at home [v Spurs].

Again, the fight that you feel on the pitch, the fans that are so loud and get so much behind it.

And I think the one away… to feel that, two seasons ago.

To feel that North London Derby at the away stadium and what we can create there, and so yeah, I think those will be the two standing out for me.

I haven’t been part of so many now when I think about it…

It feels like for the players as well, you’ve got so many homegrown players, that the North London Derby is probably the biggest one for them as well?

Yeah, there’s certainly players in our squad that see this game as one of the biggest of the season.

SCOTT PHELAN, EVERTON

Scott Phelan has been Everton head coach since February this year – first on an interim basis and then permanently – so his Merseyside derby experiences against Liverpool are just starting to stack up. And of course, the Toffees also have the bonus of playing their home games at Goodison Park now.

What makes the Merseyside derby so special?

Derby Day is different. There is a lot of emotion involved. 
There’s a lot of talented players on the pitch on both sides. We just hope for a really good competitive performance that helps us come home with three points. 

Being from around here as I am, we probably understand a little bit deeply around what it means to people, our families and friends. It’s definitely something that is part of the calendar in our city, and we hope we can make Evertonians happy and proud come the end of the game.

That would be the biggest sense of pride that I could have. So, it is nice being a part of the occasion – to actually be the manager is a really, really nice feeling, a nice moment for me and my family. But, as I said, it’s only nice if you win on these days!

EVA OLID, MAN UNITED

The importance of derby days was solidly imprinted in the heart of new Man United head coach Eva Olid when she managed Hearts in the Scottish Women’s Premier League from 2021-26, eternally coming up against deadly Edinburgh rivals Hibernian. So Olid is no stranger to the unique quality of these days, and thoroughly enjoyed the recent match-up against City – her first Manchester derby.

When you were in Scotland, you experienced those big derbies between Hearts and Hibs, which is one of the biggest derbies in the SWPL.

So I wonder how this Manchester edition compared for you, the atmosphere, the special noise you get around a local derby.

When we had Hearts and Hibs, we were having 6,000, 7,000, and sometimes even 9,000 people in the crowd.

That Sunday [at Leigh], we had around 6,000.

In terms of the crowd, it was similar what I was used to have in derbies, and we enjoyed it a lot.

We were speaking with the staff how much we enjoyed Sunday because the people, the fans, we were with, and we were listening to them.

It is for these nights we are in football.

We really enjoyed it in all senses, in terms of how the team play, in terms of the fans, in terms of it was an intense game, and yeah, these kind of matches make us happy.

ANDRÉE JEGLERTZ, MAN CITY

As a player and head coach in the Swedish league, Andrée Jeglertz experienced endless derby days at various different teams – most notably near neighbours Umeå and Gimonås. Having joined Man City last season, he’s now faced United in the Manchester derby three times in the WSL, which brings its own unique fire.

What is it about derbies – and especially the most recent Manchester one?

There is something about derbies, so there has to be a little bit of extra attention and feelings from the players. But it’s important not to play too much on the feelings, which I felt we did a little bit in the end of the first half.

There was a lot of situations that the [United] spectators did what they could to make it difficult for us, and we also got a little bit annoyed in a couple of situations.

So we spoke about it at halftime, to try not to get into that and play too much on the feelings, just showing what a good football team we are and playing on the skill we have instead. But it’s very easy that you end up there, I think partly we did that. 

When we played United last week, it was a tough game, it was a derby feeling, a lot of emotions, so physically that game was tough in that way.

I was definitely surprised when I heard they weren’t putting this game in the big stadium. I have no idea why they chose to do that, and I can’t do anything about it. The league and the players deserve to play at the big stadiums when you play the best teams and when you play derbies.

This weekend’s local derbies in the WSL are all on Sunday 15th November: Aston Villa v Birmingham City at 2pm; West Ham v Charlton at 2pm;
and Arsenal v London City Lionesses at 4.30pm.

Photos: Helen M Jerome