The fifth week of WSL action saw the title race heat up as Arsenal handed City their second defeat in two while Chelsea left it late to come from behind to beat West Ham.
Elsewhere in the league, Birmingham picked up their first win of the season, Man United finally beat Reading and the bottom three remain winless.
Top of the table clash
Sunday saw Super League giants Arsenal and Manchester City go head-to-head in an arguably crucial tie at the top of the table.
With City winning four games from four and Arsenal falling flat against Chelsea last time out, a loss for the latter could dent their hopes of going back-to-back.
But the brisk afternoon saw Vivianne Miedema once again come up clutch for the Gunners as she latched onto Kim Little’s through ball and buried it beyond Roebuck.
City was stunted for the most part and had little attacking outlet throughout most of the game with Hemp the only one offering a threat. This was also due to the solid defensive display from Arsenal’s backline, specifically Leah Williamson (once again) and Katie McCabe.
Jordan Nobbs missed a sitter to wrap up the game late on as Miedema put her through on goal but, to the relief of fans at Meadow Park, the latter’s opener was enough to secure three points.
Last season City lost just one league game – this exact fixture on the last day of the season – but having lost this early on in the current campaign, it could bode for an interesting title race yet again.
Chelsea go top
With City falling short against Arsenal, Chelsea had the chance to go a point clear at the top of the table with a win against West Ham.
Their opportunity to go top looked threatened as Adriana Leon gave the Hammers the lead coming off the bench and scoring with her first touch of the game no less.
Chelsea’s hard work eventually came good in the last 20 minutes as goals from Ingle, Ji and Spence were enough to seal a huge victory in their bid for the title.
Having already beaten Arsenal this season, Hayes’ side looks set to mix up the top two come to the end of the season.
Elsewhere in the WSL
League newcomers Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United were victorious once again as the former came from behind to beat Bristol City, while United saw off Reading in a comfortable 2-0 victory.
Birmingham City finally got their campaign underway with their first victory of the season. They took on equally struggling Liverpool as both sides entered the fixture winless.
City’s Lucy Staniforth proved to be the vital difference for the two sides – first setting up Harrop before getting on the scoresheet herself to help Birmingham to their first win and what could be a huge three points at the bottom of the table.
Brighton also suffered yet another defeat, this time to high flying Everton who look renowned under Willie Kirk. Despite a dominating display from Kirk’s side, it took until the second half to find the net with Chloe Kelly striking first and scoring her fourth goal in five league games. Esme Morgan wrapped up the three points heading home with 20 minutes to go.
This weekend will see another league break as the third week of Continental Cup group games go ahead.