Man City bounced back from their early season wobble with a convincing 3-0 victory over Tottenham in the Barclays FA WSL.
Goals from Khadija (Bunny) Shaw and Lauren Hemp ensured the blue half of Manchester kept pace with not only their local city rivals but also Arsenal and Chelsea too ahead of their Sunday games against Liverpool and Brighton respectively.
The north Londoners came into this one having never beaten Man City at home in the FA WSL and with Rehanne Skinner’s long-term Champions League aspirations in mind, this was a big chance for the Lilywhites to make a statement to the rest of their competitors. Having already failed their first big test of the season miserably in the north London derby, Man City were expected to inflict the same type of misery on their opponents.
Gareth Taylor’s priority though would have to ensure that his side would not break FA WSL history in the process as a third consecutive loss away from home would have been the first time the Citizens had ever achieved this feat domestically following the early season Aston Villa and Chelsea set-backs. The visitors got on the front foot early on and the Lionesses link-up between Chloe Kelly and Lauren Hemp was evident to see from the get-go with the former having a routine header saved by Rebecca Spencer.
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Ellie Brazil, who was making her first FA WSL start of the season, was the victim of her own hardworking attitude early on as chasing down a ball in behind resulted in a nasty clash with City goalkeeper Ellie Roebuck. Tottenham’s number 10, unfortunately, had to be stretchered off as her leg injury meant Jessica Naz was introduced within the first ten minutes after the long stoppage came to an end. Surely, injuries wouldn’t be the determining factor that would sink Skinner’s side on this bright and sunny Saturday, October afternoon.
Thankfully, star player Ash Neville was able to soldier on after going down 15 minutes into a contest which was a slow burner in the early parts of the first half due to the injuries. Esme Morgan and Hemp both went close to the opening goal for Taylor’s side before the red-hot Bunny Shaw popped up from a corner in the 40th minute to head Man City in front, deservedly too on the balance of play. Both Molly Bartrip and Evelina Summanen were the culprits in this situation for allowing the Jamaican to find the space required to net her fourth goal of the 2022/23 campaign.
Would history be repeating itself for Skinner’s side with some Arsenal De Ja Vu? Before the whistle was blown, they showed signs of life but nothing to seriously worry City goalkeeper Ellie Roebuck who was a spectator for most of the opening 45 minutes.
Surprisingly, Skinner went with the same side at the start of the second period. A decision which backfired dramatically only two minutes into the second half as Shaw found so much space outside the Spurs box to unleash an effort from range which nestled into the bottom corner.
Worryingly for City’s number 21, she was involved shortly after as the theme of injuries carried over into the second 45 minutes for both sides. Unlike Brazil in the first half though, Shaw kept on going as the prospect of a hat trick was on the cards.
And that itself was nearly achieved in the 61st minute if it wasn’t for the brilliant work of Bartrip to atone for her own first-half error. Damage limitation and keeping the scoreline modest seemed to be the order of the second half for Tottenham Hotspur Women, who were afraid that another 4-0 Arsenal-esque thumping was in the pipeline here.
Shaw had chances to achieve the elusive hat-trick but at the same time, Spurs didn’t just roll over as Drew Spence and Neville continued to try and link up for a consolation goal. It would have just been a consolation though and nothing more as Hemp found acres of room in the penalty area to sweep home her left-footed effort in the 75th minute.
Could the Arsenal repeat of a 4-0 defeat be avoided against a superior opposition? Despite Kelly’s best efforts, the fourth goal was avoided but that itself didn’t take away from the fact that Skinner’s eventual Champions League aspirations to replicate what Antonio Conte has done with the men's side, will need patience and time as reiterated post-match. "I don't think I said we will be in the Champions League this year, so I think the most important thing is what the club is trying to build towards," she said.
"When that evolves is obviously something that we are looking to continue to improve year-on-year, season-on-season, game-by-game, so ultimately the lessons we learn from now are the things that are going to facilitate us being able to play in the Champions League, so ultimately for us, it's a work in process and when we are ready to get there, we will."
Nonetheless, ahead of Sunday's fixtures, Spurs are still in an amicable position of eighth place after four games played in 2022/23.
Tottenham player ratings: Rebecca Spencer- 6; Amy Turner- 6, Molly Bartrip- 6, Shelina Zadorsky- 5; Celin Bizet IIdhusoy- 5, Angharad James- 6, Eveliina Summanen- 5, Asmita Ale-6; Ellie Brazil- N/A, Drew Spence- 7, Ash Neville- 7.
Substitutes:
Jessica Naz- 6, Nikola Karczewska- N/A, Chioma Ubogagu- N/A
Teams
Spurs (3-4-3)
Amy Turner, Molly Bartrip, Shelina Zadorsky; Celin Bizet IIdhusoy, Angharad James, Eveliina Summanen, Asmita Ale; Ellie Brazil, Drew Spence, Ash Neville.
Substitutes
Jessica Naz, Nikola Karczewska, Chioma Ubogagu
Man City (4-3-3)
Ellie Roebuck, Kerstin Casparij, Esme Morgan, Alex Greenwood; Yui Hasegawa; Deyna Castellanos, Laia Aleixandri, Laura Coombs; Chloe Kelly, Lauren Hemp, Bunny Shaw.
Substitutes
Mary Fowler, Filippa Angeldahl, Vicky Losada.
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