City blow but bank on more title twists
Manchester City were left ruing missed chances after Arsenal’s punchy second-half comeback from a goal down to win 2-1. “The first half was some of the best stuff we’ve played,” said City’s manager, Gareth Taylor, after his side failed to finish off an exhausted and depleted Arsenal. “We should have had more than the 1-0 at half-time, but we said if 1-0 has to be enough then make it be enough.” Taylor insisted there would be “a few more twists and turns” in the title race, with City and Arsenal still to play Manchester United, and Chelsea hosting Arsenal at Kingsmeadow, but City’s hopes of a first league title since 2016 have been dealt a massive blow. SW
Blues dig deep to cruise at Villa
If there was game to test Chelsea’s league credentials, Sunday at Aston Villa was it. Usually fixtures between the top three or four teams decide the destination of the title, but after Chelsea had been through 120 minutes and a shootout against Lyon on Thursday to progress to the Champions League semi-finals Villa appeared to present a real problem. Instead, the Blues dispatched the home side, who had not lost or failed to score since 26 January, with ease. Goals from Jelena Cankovic and Guro Reiten in the first half were added to by Sam Kerr in style in the second. “We’ve played so many games with such high intensity,” Reiten said. “We have injured players, players struggling with bits and pieces, but somehow we managed to rock up with this performance.” SW
Leicester continue great escape
Twelve minutes of injury time. A winner halfway through them. Leicester’s match against relegation rivals Reading had it all. Willie Kirk was full of praise for his side’s character with this 2-1 victory a clear sign of their progression. Previously, once pegged back they would have capitulated, but on Sunday they showed resilience and found a way. Their dominance was clear: they controlled possession and created 19 opportunities to Reading’s nine. Chances have been falling their way in recent weeks, but a failure to capitalise has proved a problem. It looked to be a similar story with Reading’s goal living a blessed life for much of the match. However, the 19-year-old Carrie Jones made it count when it mattered most. Off the bottom for the first time, Leicester appear to have the momentum heading into the run-in. SD
How are you feeling @LCFC_Women fans?#BarclaysWSL pic.twitter.com/tO0XYCp2bR
— Barclays Women's Super League (@BarclaysWSL) April 2, 2023
Galton shines as United remain top
Marc Skinner reserved extra praise for the impressive Leah Galton after Manchester United’s 4-0 victory over Brighton. “She’s one of the best left-sided players I’ve ever worked with and I’ve worked with Marta at Orlando,” he said. “Now I see even more growth in her and she does all the hard work on the defensive side. She’s really good in the air and has that ability to beat anybody one v one.” The English winger’s performance on Saturday was eye-catching, with her speed and tenacity stretching the backline. She scored her seventh and eighth goals of the season, her second the key turning point in an edgy encounter. It was a goal that encapsulated Galton – her turn of pace, vision and fine finishing producing a moment of magic. The win ensured United remain top, in prime position for a fascinating WSL conclusion. SD
Hammers win point remain goal-shy
West Ham ended their losing streak in the WSL, but all is not positive after their 0-0 home draw against Liverpool. The last time the Hammers had picked up a point was in their 0-0 draw to Arsenal on 5 February. They have since lost to Reading, Aston Villa and Manchester United (as well as to Chelsea and Villa again in the cups). The point means they maintain seventh place, butwhile the club are moving in the right direction, the stats are not all good. They have not scored in seven of their 17 league fixtures. That is one fewer than the number of games they did not score in all 22 WSL fixtures last season. SR
Beever-Jones rewarded for taking risk
Aggie Beever-Jones sent the Everton home crowd into raptures after she scored in the fourth minute of added time to secure a 2-1 victory over Tottenham. Elise Stenevik put in a long-range pass that was well read by Beever-Jones, who took five touches and then punted towards goal. Spurs’ Amy Turner and Angharad James did their best to close down the chance, but they came together and the ball took a deflection to take it away from the goalkeeper, Rebecca Spencer. Beever-Jones’s attempt was on target and so it was awarded to the forward. Everton’s manager, Brian Sørensen, said: “I told her [Beever-Jones] just before we went into stoppage time to start taking chances, start to dribble a bit more, because one thing she needs to work on is being smart and understanding how to deal with the pressure around her. But she also needs to take chances, needs to take risks, so I got that message to her and she started to do that. ” SR
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Man Utd Women | 17 | 37 | 41 |
| 2 | Chelsea Women | 16 | 28 | 40 |
| 3 | Arsenal Women | 16 | 30 | 38 |
| 4 | Man City Women | 17 | 19 | 38 |
| 5 | Aston Villa Women | 17 | 4 | 29 |
| 6 | Everton Women | 16 | 3 | 24 |
| 7 | West Ham Women | 17 | -13 | 17 |
| 8 | Liverpool FC Women | 16 | -11 | 16 |
| 9 | Tottenham Hotspur Women | 17 | -16 | 12 |
| 10 | Reading Women | 17 | -19 | 11 |
| 11 | Leicester Women | 17 | -30 | 10 |
| 12 | Brighton & Hove Albion Women | 15 | -32 | 9 |
