Manchester City came from behind twice to beat Arsenal 4-2 in an absorbing six-goal thriller at the Etihad Stadium, extending their 100% start to the Women’s Super League season and leaving the Gunners 10 points behind the defending champions after five rounds of fixtures.
Arsenal, last season’s runners-up, had high hopes of mounting a strong challenge this term, but their chances of lifting a first WSL title since 2019 now appear to be hanging by a thread. The defeat piled further pressure on head coach Renée Slegers, who signed a new contract in January until the summer of 2029.
Slegers defiant despite growing gap
The 37-year-old Dutchwoman said on Friday that she felt the full support of the club. Asked after the pivotal defeat whether she would be in charge after this month’s international break, she replied: “All I know so far is that the last couple of days we’ve been together as a club, as a team, with support, aligning on the direction. Of course, this result is disappointing, but I’m here, I’m full of energy and I care a lot for the club.”
Slegers added that the international break will come at a good time to change environments and that there will be a “big review of our season so far” during the break. She continued: “We see solutions and we see the closeness. It’s not that we’re totally off it. It’s been consistently about margins – when we get them on our side, I think we’re going to be really good.”
Thrilling comeback at the Etihad
The match was the first to be played at the Etihad Stadium since the Premier League published the guilty verdict against Manchester City, and there was something of a subdued atmosphere outside the stadium in the buildup to kick-off. That quickly changed once the game started, and was wholly different in the second half as the hosts began to take control.
City had frequently insisted their women’s team were treating this as “business as usual” before their draw with Real Madrid on Thursday. There were very few references to the ongoing saga here on Sunday, aside from some Arsenal fans chanting “same old City, always cheating” during the first half, and one City fan who defiantly shouted about which part of the anatomy people could “stick your 115 charges”, but nobody else joined in.
City will have felt aggrieved about the nature of Arsenal’s opener, as replays showed that Lisa Baum appeared to be offside when Lotte Wubben-Moy headed goalwards. Baum was the quickest to get to the rebound after Ayaka Yamashita’s save and poked home. The visitors could not hold on until the break, however, as Lauren Hemp’s deflected strike found its way into the far corner.
Arsenal went back in front shortly after half-time when Yui Hasegawa lost the ball inside her own area and Alessia Russo pounced, curling a terrific finish into the far corner. It was her first league goal of the campaign. Arsenal appeared to be in control until a triple substitution from Andrée Jeglertz, including the introduction of Kerstin Casparij, changed things.
Casparij and Shaw turn the tide
The 26-year-old, playing as an inverted full-back, latched on to a loose ball and curled in a delightful strike to equalise, and soon afterwards Hemp tucked a tidy finish through Anneke Borbe’s legs to make it 3-2. Suddenly Arsenal’s body language changed and City were on top. They added a clinical fourth when Shaw latched on to Aoba Fujino’s excellent through-ball and her low finish was superb.
Jeglertz was full of praise for Casparij and his centre-back pairing of Jade Rose and Alex Greenwood. Asked about Arsenal’s woes, he said he still expects them to have a strong campaign, saying: “They have great football players - I’m pretty sure that when we are coming into spring that they will definitely be one of the teams battling.”
Arsenal’s problems were exacerbated by their midfielder Mariona Caldentey going off with a suspected hamstring injury. The Arsenal defender Wubben-Moy said there was unity as she told Sky Sports the players “fought for ourselves, for Renée and for the fans - but ultimately the result didn’t do that justice”, adding: “This is an unprecedented position for Arsenal to be in. It’s up to us to get ourselves out of it.”
Her words may offer some solace to Slegers. So will the sight of the 2,000 travelling fans applauding her after the game. The upcoming “review” will determine whether or not that was a farewell.
