Limbs in the away end
Limbs in the away end
This is not a drill: there was a draw in the WSL
The WSL’s return after the international break did not disappoint with the showcase fixture at the Emirates throwing up a fantastic late come back whilst the WSL draw curse was broken in a six goal thriller. The title race looks to be exceptionally even with Arsenal losing and all three teams at the top of the table having lost a game each.
Of course the WSL is now competing with the Men’s World Cup. This could have been an opportunity to put the league front and centre but the amount of resources the media is funnelling towards the international tournament suggests instead it will be an opportunity missed. It is a timely reminder that despite all the excitement that came from the Euros win, women’s football remains easily brushed aside when not convenient.
Arsenal 2 - Manchester United 3
Manchester United staged a late comeback to inflict a first defeat of the season on Arsenal. With two set-piece goals from Millie Turner and Alessia Russo in the 85th and 91st minute, United ensured that they went level on points with Arsenal and kept in touch with Chelsea at the top of the table.
A draw might have been a fair result but Arsenal’s performance was pretty flat. As you can see in the pass network, all three of Arsenal’s attacking players were isolated and Caitlin Foord was the only Arsenal player to manager more than one touch in United’s penalty area. Arsenal made 230 accurate passes compared to United’s 375; the absence of Kim Little and her ball retention was clearly felt.
For Manchester United, this will be a big confidence boost. They have beaten Arsenal twice in the past but coming off the back of the loss against Chelsea before the international break, this felt like a win that emphasised their claim to now be on a level with the traditional big three of Arsenal, Chelsea and City.
Just as a final note, this was the third consecutive time that Arsenal had conceded to an Alessia Russo header. After the match Jonas Eidevall said that he didn’t value the goals differently whether they came from open play or set plays but being so susceptible to Katie Zelem’s deliveries and Russo’s aerial threat is a concern.
Chelsea 3 - Tottenham 0
Chelsea made light work of a Tottenham side who continue to struggle defensively, particularly against bigger sides. Despite a nervy looking start, goals from Sam Kerr, Erin Cuthbert and a Guro Reiten penalty ensured this was a comfortable win for a Chelsea team who had the benefit of knowing that Arsenal had now also dropped points.
Chelsea targeted Tottenham’s flanks well, with Jessie Fleming peeling out from her number 10 role to double up with Guro Reiten on the left. That also gave Lauren James the freedom to either move centrally with the ball or take both Asmita Ale and Ashleigh Neville on on the outside.
Most concerning for Rehanne Skinner though will be Tottenham’s lax attitude. The time Erin Cuthbert was given on the edge of the area to shoot when the ball came out to her following a corner was one example, but the fact that all four of Kadeisha Buchanan, Millie Bright, Magda Eriksson and Aniek Nouwen managed to make runs from defence into the Tottenham penalty area should have been of even more concern.
Brighton 3 - Liverpool 3
Finally! A WSL draw! And an exciting one at that. Brighton were 3-1 up at half time but late goals from Shanice van de Sanden and Rachel Furness ensured Liverpool ended their five game losing streak.
Whilst it might feel like Brighton have improved significantly since Hope Powell’s exit, I wonder if it is more complicated than that. They had repeatedly shown attacking threat this season with two of the top five highest non-penalty expected goals per 90 being Danielle Carter and Elisabeth Terland. These recent goal flurries might be more to do with luck than Amy Merricks’ coaching.
The concern will be that they still look very leaky defensively. To go 3-1 up and still draw comes off the back of almost blowing a 3 goal lead against West Ham. Brighton might feel like it is worth being more open to create the attacking opportunities, but it is going to continue to leave them vulnerable.
Everton 1 - Manchester City 2
Manchester City dominated this 2-1 win over Everton, despite the scoreline making it appear much tighter than it was, with Everton being masters of their own downfall as some rather loose defending allowed Julie Blakstad and Bunny Shaw to get the two goals. City almost scored from kick off, looking much more confident than they have in recent weeks despite missing a whole host of key players including Alex Greenwood and Lauren Hemp.
You can see the direction that Everton want to move in, and in fact some of their play is very reminiscent of Manchester United a season or so ago. At their best, their passing moves are slick and allow them to move quickly up the pitch, but they are still susceptible to the lapses in concentration which enabled City to take advantage. There are certainly reasons to be positive for Brian Sorensen’s side though.
West Ham 1 - Leicester City 0
Well this one was not a classic. Izzy Atkinson got a late winner for West Ham - her first WSL goal - after dancing her way through the Leicester penalty area, but Kate Longhurst still had to clear off the line to stop Leicester equalising, as well as there being a goal disallowed for offside. It is becoming quite a familiar story for Leicester this season, as they keep control of games for long periods of time but are unable to turn that into goal scoring opportunities. For Willie Kirk to have any chance of keeping Leicester up, he needs to find a way for them to make the most of how well they stay in games. It might be that they need to iterate on the Brighton method and give up a little bit of that control…
Aston Villa 3 - Reading 1
The Rachel Daly show rolls on with the England striker getting a hat trick here to turn around an early deficit to Reading. With two headers and a penalty, Daly went level with Bunny Shaw at the top of the WSL goal scoring charts - particularly impressive given Aston Villa’s position in the table.
There was an intriguing return to the pitch for goalkeeper Grace Moloney who had been missing from the Reading squad in the games prior to the international break following the controversy around the Irish national team’s celebrations after qualifying for the World Cup. A red card for Jackie Burns meant Moloney came on in the second half, and whilst she could not keep out Daly’s penalty, it remains to be seen whether she will take back her spot as Reading’s first choice goalkeeper.