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Much like bad weather hit the northern region the night before, Manchester City swept the visitors aside at the their home ground. It was a emphatic 3-0 triumph for the City coach's side due to goals from Rebecca Knaak, Bunny Shaw and Lauren Hemp. It was a result that firmly established their title credentials as they reinforced their position at the top of the table.

Consecutive Defeats for Manchester United

This scoreline represented consecutive WSL defeats for Skinner's side for the initial occasion since last May, putting them seven points off the league leaders with their championship aspirations hanging by a thread.

Manchester United's ability to manage domestic and European football with a small squad has been a hotly discussed topic since they earned a place in the UCL. Considering the fixture list, it always appeared this was the period that would fully examine this fortitude. Regrettably for the opposition, they appeared fatigued from start to finish, the landmark win against the French side clearly having left its mark.

Team Changes

Marc Skinner had attempted to freshen things up with a handful of changes. Toone, Elisabeth Terland, Janssen and Galton all brought freshness, although the dropping of the high-performing Melvine Malard to the substitutes caused surprise.

The hosts, in contrast, have no such loading worries. Jeglertz made one adjustment from their most recent win over Everton with Lauren Hemp making her first start since recovering from injury.

Commanding Opening Period

The trouble started to gather for Skinner and his side from the opening minute. This was a exhibition of the strength from City whose energetic forward line controlled and dismantled the opposition with a excellent opening period display that saw them put three past the keeper in 21 minutes.

This placed City in a commanding position and saw the visitors struggling. Prior to this encounter, United had let in just few in this domestic competition but they disintegrated in the wake of the hosts' attacking flair.

Early Chances

The early indicators came soon when Miedema used her strength to bundle Julia Zigiotti off the ball, only to drag her shot past the post. Lauren Hemp was at the center of everything early on, taking advantage of the space left by Riviere down United’s right side. Her deliveries were causing problems and led to an attempt for Yui Hasegawa that Anna Sandberg kicked off the line.

United had several forays ahead, their long-ball tactic giving them alternatives in the wings but they could not test Ayaka Yamashita. Manchester City, in the meantime, controlled possession, probing their opponents and trying to lure them of their defensive shape.

Goals Galore

They converted their dominance with almost the first period played when Aoba Fujino won the home team a set-piece. A ball to the back post was nodded across goal by Shaw for Rebecca Knaak to head in. It was City’s seventh goal from a cross of the campaign.

They extended their lead with an additional two goals just before the interval. When Jade Rose was able to drive through the middle from the back, the play became spacious for the hosts. The key Kerstin Casparij collected the pass on the wing before providing a pinpoint driven ball for Shaw to tap home. Shortly later, they had a third goal after a quick shift in possession saw Hemp given the opportunity to drive a attempt home from distance.

After the Break

The most obvious change came from the United manager at the half-time as Melvine Malard was introduced for Terland but by this time it was too late to shift the momentum of the game. Former City player Park came closest, hitting the post, but the visitors were lacking in ideas and were unable to produce a solitary shot on target.

The home side, on the other hand, could have extended their cushion when a superb Vivianne Miedema pass sent Bunny Shaw away only for her to fluff her lines but it did not affect the result to the hosts. Previously unable to defeat any opponent who placed above them last season, City's side now have wins against Arsenal and Manchester United to place them in a commanding standing after nine matches.