The Assist: Fridolina Rolfö exclusive, UWCL, WSL, and more

In the build up to the final round of games in the league phase of this season’s Champions League, The Assist is back with an exclusive interview with Man United star Fridolina Rolfö, brought to you by our friends at GirlsOnTheBall, plus we take a look at the situation in the WSL and the last remaining games of the year.

There was plenty of excitement around Manchester United when it was announced that Fridolina Rolfö would join the club back in August. Calls for increased backing for the women's team from the club's board have been prevalent over the last few seasons and once again the summer transfer window had been quiet.

With just three incomings and the hope of competing in the Champions League for the first time, the arrival of a player of the Sweden international's calibre was welcome news not just for the experience she would bring but also the addition of some much-needed squad depth if the team were to compete on multiple fronts.

For Rolfö is one of the most seasoned and versatile players in the game at the moment. The two-time Champions League winner spent four seasons at all-conquering Barcelona before heading to Manchester with previous stints at VfL Wolfsburg and Bayern Munich.

Sitting down with the 32-year-old before the winter break, Rolfö appears to be settling well into her new environment. 

“I feel great,” she says. “We have many exciting games ahead of us. You always you want to give your all in this last push before the Christmas break and you want to go in having a great feeling.”

It has been a successful start to the campaign for Marc Skinner’s side who are fighting on four fronts. They currently sit third in the Barclays WSL and secured progression in Europe with two games of the League Phase to spare.

“I would say we're growing every week,” she continues. “We still have to learn. But I think we're performing really well. We already qualified for the round of 18 in the Champions League and we're doing great in the league... We just have to continue working on some details to be more decent and create more chances. But I think we have started something really good together.” 

Rolfö had to be patient to get her chance to show the team and their fans what she could do. Having suffered an ankle injury in a Nations League fixture back in June, the race was on to get fit for the Euros.

“I would say [settling in] was a bit tougher,” she remembers. “Of course, you want to go straight into the team but it took me a little bit longer to recover. I had to push it a lot in the summer in the Euros. In the end, it was a good decision to take it a little bit slower. But it also made it a little bit harder to get into everything in the beginning here at United. It feels like I’m getting more and more into it.”

To help herself adapt, she has had to draw on the nous she has gained from a 17-year career that has seen her ply her trade in four different countries. 

“When I get to a team, I want to get to know the players,” she states. “How do they play? What do they do? What kind of movements [do they make]? Where do they want the ball? Those are the main things that you have to focus on in the beginning. But I would say that the people here are easy to get along with and easy to communicate with and that also makes it easier.”

Her integration into the squad after her return has, at least from the outside appeared seamless, developing natural connections with the players around. She scored her first goal for the club in the Champions League, the winner in their 1-0 victory away to Atlético Madrid. She went on to head home the winner over PSG on a historic night at Old Trafford – “I will remember that one,” she says with a smile – followed by an almost exact replica against her former team Wolfsburg. Just last weekend, she scored her first two goals in the Barclays WSL, completing United’s remarkable comeback from a 3-0 deficit against Tottenham Hotspur to steal a point. 

For her part, she is enjoying the challenges in a league that is “much more competitive than the other leagues I've been playing in before”. “Every weekend is really tough and there are many great teams”, she states. “It’s physical and it's fast… that's how you want it as a player.”

In terms of the Champions League, it has been an impressive run for a team who is experiencing the top echelons of European football for the first time. Having a player like Rolfö, however, is invaluable to help guide the way of her younger, less experienced teammates. “I know what it is like to play in the Champions League and playing those different teams,” she says. “I'm trying to bring everything that I have, like the way I play and leading by example but also talking to the girls about what to expect.”

As mentioned, tonight sees the final set of league phase games in this new format for the Women’s Champions League. United, who are assured at least a knock out phase play-off place, travel to Juventus, one of the sides vying for a top four finish and direct qualification to the quarterfinals.

Fired on by Italy legend Cristiana Girelli, Juve will be a tough test for debutants United. But, the WSL club aren’t mathematically out of the running for those four automatic births themselves, and start the game one point and five places down on their opponents.

Elsewhere, Chelsea are handily placed but must go to an always competitive Wolfsburg in their final fixture. League phase leaders Barcelona face a Paris FC side who have secured their progression to the next stage while Lyon host Atlético Madrid, one of three teams fighting over two remaining spots in the next phase.

Defending champions Arsenal are another of the 10 sides who will play again in the competition once we’ve safely navigated the festive period, and they end the league phase away in Belgium, where they play OH Leuven.

The Women’s Super League may have already wrapped up for Christmas but there is an extraordinary story brewing here as Manchester City head in to 2026 with a six point advantage on six-time defending champions Chelsea.

Since our November newsletter, Sonia Bompastor’s Blues have won only once in the league, drawing another two games, and losing their 34-game unbeaten run to Everton at home.

For their part, City haven’t suffered a defeat since the opening weekend (against Chelsea), and have fully justified their new billing as title favourites by outscoring everyone. They’re averaging 2.9 goals per game, taking more shots than anyone else (hitting the target seven times per game), creating the most big chances (50), and have recorded the highest xG (29.4).

Last month it was an extraordinary defeat for Barcelona that we mentioned in our recap of events in Spain’s Liga F.

But it would be fair to say that the perennial champions have responded in dominant fashion since losing their first league game without scoring for the first time in 15 years.

They’ve banged in 23 goals in their consequent five games, winning all of them, and they now hold a seven point lead over Real Madrid in the table as we head in to the league’s winter break.

Did you know that we have tailored news alerts for your favourite women’s club sides in the WSL as well as our extensive live match notifications?

If you head to a club profile in the FotMob app and click the bell icon, you’ll see an option to turn on notifications and a full menu of what is on offer, including the option for News.

Check any notifications you may want and confirm by clicking Done in the top right corner.

Cup competitions dominate the match feed for what remains of 2025, so we thought we’d highlight a few key games here:

17 Dec: Nine simultaneous kickoffs mark the final round of the Women’s Champions League league phase.

19-21 Dec: The Copa de le Reina Round of 16 will be played across the weekend, with Barcelona in action, at Deportivo Alavés, on Sunday.

20 Dec: Lyon have the chance to make it 11 wins from 11 in France’s Premiere Ligue when they play FC Fleury 91.

21 Dec: All four quarterfinals of the Women’s League Cup in England take place on Sunday, with the highlights perhaps being Arsenal’s trip to Championship side Crystal Palace and Fridolina Rolfö’s Manchester United up against Spurs.

22 Dec: Frauen Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich look to defeat their 13-game unbeaten start to the campaign at fifth placed Bayer Leverkusen.

Bonus Tip: Click on any of the match dates above, then tap the star in the top right of the match page to automatically add them to the top of your main match feed in the app.