Chelsea’s team depth carries them to the title
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Sky Sports’ Anton Trowie reviews Chelsea’s victory over Women’s Super League against Manchester City, including a controversial goal by City’s Jess Park
Chelsea’s victory in Man City was a clear indicator of their immeasurable team depth.
Sonia Bompastor made six changes from mid-week, handing over the WSL to regular replacements such as Aggie Beever-Jones, Mika Hamano and Oriane Jean-Francois.
The first half is certainly shown in the change. It was sometimes heavy and pedestrians – a word that we often can’t relate to Chelsea. The judge’s controversy and the breadth of posting prevented them from going down 3-0 on the break.
However, since it wasn’t the first time this season, Bonpazar needed a massive halftime team talk. Beever -Jones (who provided the opportunity to help the team) became equal after the break.
And as the second half continued, so did the pressure ramp up, and the talent from the bench just kept coming. They got Keira Walsh, Mayra Ramirez and scorer Erin Cuthbert, who only names three.
There was also Mia Fischel’s return from the ACL, but that was before Sam Kerr remembered that he hadn’t returned from the same injury yet.
Chelsea finishes work when needed in WSL, and squad rotation helps deal with heavy fixture lists. It is the champion mark that everyone plays their part.
The same mentality will need to be applied in Thursday’s Man City finale as Chelsea is now trying to overturn a 2-0 deficit in the Champions League. Each player will be needed again.
Charlotte Marsh
A ruthless guy utd because they keep the heat in Arsenal
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Highlights from the women’s Super League match between Aston Villa and Manchester United
Chelsea has been a class far apart from this semester, but the fight to see who will finish as Champions-Elect runner-up has been fascinating in recent months.
Arsenal won 10 of their last 11 matches. The latest arrival on Saturday hit Liverpool 4-0, clearing three points from their nearest rival.
However, Man UTD coincided with Gunner’s results when he defeated Aston Villa on the same scoreline on Sunday. The villain struggled, one point above the bottom club Crystal Palace, with manager Natalia Arroyo admitting his low confidence after the game. Who can blame them?
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Grey Scrington scored a great goal from 40 yards after a controversial tackle in a clash with Aston Villa in the Manchester United Women’s Super League.
Still, Mark Skinner’s side made the most out of Grace Clinton’s 40-yard screamer picking goals at Villa Park. Arsenal is better than United in terms of goal difference, so it was important to fit them.
It seems you only had five games left to play this season.
Dan Long
Kerolin has proven to be a tricky customer again for Bompastor’s Blues
Kerolin has been in and out of The Man City team since joining from North Carolina’s courage in January, and although she has been impressed from the off, Brazil International has not had much chance to make a big impact, with the regular starting spot still being glued to it.
Four of her previous 11 appearances, she played within 15 minutes, but she started the final two (against Chelsea) and scored goals and assists.
She faced the Blues in Game 1 of the Champions League quarterfinals on Wednesday, setting up Vivianne Miedema to take second place in a 2-0 victory, and gave a great first half performance on Sunday with her first WSL goal.
She handed Niam Charles nightmare when she escaped twice on the right side within the first 30 minutes. And when she did the same thing, the Chelsea backline didn’t step in and was able to cool the opening goal down to the bottom left corner.
The 25-year-old was much quieter after the break as the league leader turned the screws and eventually got on top, but she proved a tricky customer before the break, and Thursday night’s European quarter
Dan Long
Is Arsenal hit form at the right time?
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See highlights from the women’s super league match between Arsenal and Liverpool
Five are buzzwords – five games going to WSL, Arsenal moved 5 points behind Chelsea in a victory over Liverpool – the Blues increased to 8 again on Sunday.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t a 5-0 scoreline, but it might have been. The gunners had the opportunity to defeat the Reds completely and score 18 shots.
This has been a break from some off-going performances in recent weeks. The surge under Lenny Slegger was not intended to continue, but it was a detrimental time to leave the FA Cup for Liverpool two weeks ago and lose his first match in the Champions League quarterfinals against Real Madrid midweek.
Arsenal needed a morale-boosting victory ahead of Wednesday’s home tie, and that’s exactly what they did.
Football is exactly the style Arsenal wanted, known for his bold dominant, slick passes, excellent team movements and some great goals. Liverpool never got a chance when each player was working together at the top of the game, collectively and individually.
If they can replicate it in the next few days and weeks, there is a possibility of another European semi-final, as well as pressure on Chelsea.
Arsenal runs a kind WSL. Three of the last five games have opposed the current Bottom 3, with Brighton and Mann UTD coming to an end.
The Sleagers told Sky Sports that the gunners are there for a slip from Chelsea, but the first step to the idea of the title has to be their own consistency. Saturday’s victory was a positive first step.
Charlotte Marsh
Liverpool handled strict reality checks and Arsenal
Liverpool was treated with a harsh reality check on Saturday.
Although Amber Whiteley has won four to four since he was appointed by the interim boss for an impressive form of run, the Emirates had a bay in his class.
Aside from one or two spikes from Cornelia Kapok, the Reds were the second best fixture overall.
In the brief relief spell they had from the Arsenal onslaught, the Liverpool players remained isolated and as a result, no ideas were found.
The scoreline can even flatten your performance. That could have been much worse.
Caitlyn Ford, who scored his first goal, outlined that Arsenal had “points to prove” a few weeks after his disappointment.
Liverpool isn’t a bad team, but there’s still some way to do it, as they compete with the best teams in the WSL.
Patrick Lowe
Crystal Palace is restored by poor defense
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Highlights from the women’s Super League match between Everton and Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace may have lifted it from the bottom of the table last weekend, aiming for a 3-1 victory over relegated rival Aston Villa.
And most of the time, Crystal Palace matched Everton. They had better openings in the first half – late goals aside – statistically overall, there were no big bays in the numbers.
The Eagles were never overruns and a 3-0 loss was probably tough on them. However, they were undoubtedly missed by a team that fitted better into the WSL.
The offensive play was good – Clarissa Larissay was a certain bright spot – it was a clear indication that defenses on all three goals still had a lot to learn. It’s no surprise to the team that has confirmed 43 times this season. This is the most common in WSL.
Attempts to clear the opener line were confusing and weak. Josie Green had no clue Sarah Holmgard was second right behind her, and Kelly Gago was wide open for the ball on top. The defender was out of position and could not stop her second half.
There were good moments in defense too – Lily Woodham screened the ball on the right channel in the first half – but Everton took advantage of those naive moments to snatch the points.
Crystal Palace is behind Aston Villa and the demotion is by no means a completed transaction. However, the area of improvement is clear to them for survival of the decline.
Charlotte Marsh
