Looking ahead to Wednesday’s match between VfL Wolfsburg and Manchester United, She Wolf Guro Bergsvand says the battle between her and Manchester United’s Elisabeth Terland will be a personal one.
Two-time UEFA Women’s Champions League winners VfL Wolfsburg face Manchester United in the competition’s inaugural league phase on Wednesday evening. Norwegian international Guro Bergsvand moved from Women’s Super League (WSL) club Brighton to the German giants in the summer and previewed the She Wolves’ match against the Manchester Red Devils.
Bergsvand thinks the match against Manchester United is going to be a tough one, but feels Wolfsburg are up for the challenge. Being asked to assess Manchester United’s strengths and weaknesses, Bergsvand is quick to say they are a strong all-round team.
“I think there’s a little bit of a new Man United, but at least what I’m seeing this year, they have more depth in their squad, they have more different variations in their playing style. Before, they’ve always been solid for at least a few years in the back. Not letting teams create a lot of chances on them being solid.
“And now up front too, I think they have some individual quality that we definitely need to be aware of, and then we need to be clinical. It’s huge in the Champions League. You need to put away the chances that you get because against a team like Man United, you’re not going to get that many. But also we need to try and limit their strikers or forwards try to disrupt what they’re going at. So, yeah, definitely a good team, it’s going to be a huge challenge for us, but we’re definitely up for it.”
Bergsvand has played with Manchester United striker Elisabeth Terland at Brighton & Hove Albion, as well as the Norwegian national team, but is also good friends with her. Bergsvand remembers Brighton’s matches against Manchester United in which the central defender came up against Terland fondly.
“Well, I remember in the games when we played Man United last year, we were very focused on Elisabeth. She’s a great finisher and a great striker and we just know that she can show up in big moments. And I was very aware of her and also being my teammate, I played against her a lot of times. It’s like a personal battle as well. So it felt good not having her score in those games and yeah, looking forward to seeing her here and hopefully we won’t let her score here either”, Bergsvand observed.
‘There is not really anything like the WSL’ says former Brighton defender Bergsvand
Bergsvand feels like her experience in the WSL has prepared her well for UEFA Women’s Champions League football.
“I mean, there’s not really anything like the WSL,” Bergsvand admits. “That’s just how it is, the competitiveness of the league. It’s different here in Germany. The league is really good and it’s getting better and better, but playing every week against good teams with great or different qualities, like playing Arsenal and Chelsea and those are the teams that play in the Champions League as well. And that definitely helps, you know, you play against the best, you know what to expect, you know the tempo and mental and physical demands that those games require. And I definitely feel like the WSL prepared me for that in the Champions League.”
Wolfsburg have won the Champions League two times, back-to-back in 2013 and 2014. It has now been over a decade since the club won their last title. They got very close in 2023 when they lost the final against Barcelona 3-2 after going up 2-0 in the early stages. Bergsvand explains that the club’s ambitions are still very much to win the competition again. She also feels that the team could get quite far, and maybe even win the competition.
“It’s more competitive than it’s ever been,” the defender explains. “And I think that’s also something that Wolfsburg need to adapt to. But I think we do have a strong team and every game we hope to go out and to win the game and hopefully we’ll stay long in this competition. And it’s definitely the ambition is there and the goal is always to win. And I think if we get a good ride and if we play well, we have a really strong and competitive team that could do really well in this competition.”
The match between Wolfsburg and Manchester United will kick off at 17:45 BST on Wednesday. Watch every match of the UEFA Women’s Champions League, live on Disney+ as part of existing customer subscriptions.
