Chelsea Claims Top Spot in Women’s Super League
Chelsea Claims Top Spot in Women’s Super League with 2-0 Victory Over Manchester City.
In an electrifying match at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea Women’s Football Club secured a decisive 2-0 win over Manchester City, catapulting them to the top of the Women’s Super League table. The Blues’ triumph, witnessed by nearly 20,000 enthusiastic fans, marked a significant milestone for head coach Sonia Bompastor, who became the first coach to win her opening seven WSL matches.
*Match Highlights*
The highly anticipated top-two clash saw Chelsea make seven changes from their midweek Champions League victory over Celtic. The revamped lineup featured Hannah Hampton, Millie Bright, Lucy Bronze, Sjoeke Nusken, Guro Reiten, Johanna Rytting Kaneryd, and Mayra Ramirez.
The Blues initiated the scoring opportunities, with Rytting Kaneryd’s dangerous cross forcing Manchester City defender Kerstin Casparij to clear the ball. Maika Hamano’s subsequent set-piece was met by Bright’s header, which Ayaka Yamashita saved.
Chelsea continued to press, with Hamano and Nusken winning back possession in the final third. Rytting Kaneryd’s ball into the box was comfortably dealt with by Yamashita.
Manchester City’s first chance came when Khadija Shaw latched onto a backpass, but her shot went wide. Chelsea responded with Ramirez’s long-range strike, easily gathered by Yamashita.
As the first half concluded, Shaw’s deflected shot went behind for a corner, and the resulting set-piece was cleared by Nathalie Bjorn.
*Second-Half Intensity*
After the interval, Greenwood denied Ramirez a shot opportunity, and the Blues capitalized on the corner. Bjorn’s header went wide, and City responded with a chance from a set-piece, with Shaw’s header gathered by Hampton.
The visitors won a free-kick in a dangerous position, but Shaw’s header from Greenwood’s delivery went wide.
Chelsea’s persistence paid off in the 75th minute when Hamano’s curling pass found Ramirez, who got the better of Greenwood and buried the ball into the bottom corner.
City’s response was swift, with Shaw unleashing a powerful curling strike, comfortably collected by Hampton.
Chelsea doubled their advantage in the 79th minute when Reiten clinically curled the ball into the back of the net.
*Post-Match Analysis*
The victory solidifies Chelsea’s position at the top of the WSL table with 21 points, while Manchester City drops to second, two points behind having played a game more.
Head coach Sonia Bompastor praised her team’s performance, citing their determination and resilience.
*Upcoming Fixtures*
Chelsea returns to Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night for their Champions League encounter against Celtic. Their next WSL game is against Manchester United at Kingsmeadow next Sunday.
*Team Lineups*
Chelsea: Hampton; Bronze, Bright, Bjorn, Baltimore, Nusken, Cuthbert, Reiten (Lawrence 83), Hamano, Rytting Kaneryd, Ramirez (Beever-Jones 90)
Unused substitutes: Musovic, Perisset, Bernabe, Mpome, Kaptein, Jean-Francois, Macario
Scorers: Ramirez 75, Reiten 79
Booked: Bjorn 45+1
Manchester City: Yamashita; Casparij, Kennedy, Greenwood, Ouahabi, Roord, Hasegawa, Park (Coombs 81), Fowler (Kelly 80), Shaw, Fujino
Unused substitutes: Keating, Startup, Blindkilde, Brown, Prior, Thomas, Murphy, O’Carroll
Booked: Greenwood 47
