United shock City, Chelsea and Arsenal win big: WSL matchday 11 | OneFootball

The Women’s Super League returned with a bang, featuring a thrilling Manchester derby, while Chelsea and Arsenal kept up their winning form.

Here are the talking points from the six matches…

Hometown hat-trick hero [Manchester City 2-4 Manchester United]

Ella Toone’s remarkable hat-trick powered Manchester United to their first-ever away win against Manchester City in the WSL. After a tough few months for Toone, who lost her father in September and spent two months sidelined with a calf injury, the lifelong United fan will be delighted to be back to her scoring ways.

United climbed to third, leapfrogging City, who dropped from second to fourth. While City were hampered by injuries to key players like Bunny Shaw, Lauren Hemp, and Alex Greenwood, United’s relentless pressure forced their rivals to make critical errors.

City’s few positives included Vivianne Miedema’s return to scoring and Rebecca Knaak’s goal on her debut.

This derby win could be a pivotal moment for United, who boast the league’s best defensive record, as they look to build momentum for the rest of the season.

Toone, who scored her first WSL goal since last April, said: “From a girl who supports Manchester United, I know what these derbies mean. Today I wanted a goal, and managed to get three, so it was a special day!”

Slegers’ Arsenal put five past Palace [Arsenal 5-0 Crystal Palace]

Arsenal delivered a commanding 5-0 victory over Crystal Palace, in Renee Slegers’ first match as permanent head coach.

The victory marked their 12th consecutive win across all competitions, continuing their exceptional run of form under the Dutch coach. The Gunners took an early lead in the sixth minute when Leah Williamson converted a corner, and the second half saw goals from Alessia Russo, Beth Mead and a Mariona Caldentey brace.

Defensively, they will take confidence from their fifth consecutive WSL clean sheet, firmly asserting themselves as title contenders. This victory propels Arsenal to second place in the league standings, narrowing the gap behind leaders Chelsea.

‘Back to business’ for Chelsea [West Ham 0-5 Chelsea]

It was new year, same Chelsea as the champions continued their goalscoring form, putting five past Rehanne Skinner’s West Ham.

Sonia Bompastor’s Chelsea remain unbeaten and in the driving seat to secure their sixth consecutive WSL title, sitting seven points clear of Arsenal.

Bompastor said: “It’s back to business in the WSL with a great win and a great performance.”

Beard calls for protection of Olivia Smith [Liverpool 2-1 Brighton]

Liverpool boss Matt Beard called on the PGMOL to intervene, remaining adamant that forward Olivia Smith is being dangerously targeted by the opposition.

Smith, who became the Reds’ record signing in the summer, was once again instrumental to Liverpool’s win, producing a moment of brilliance to open the scoring. Ahead of Friday’s fixture, Smith had been fouled 20 times, second only to West Ham forward Viviane Asseyi’s 21 in the WSL.

Beard said: “We sent clips to Rebecca Welch and the PGMOL to show the treatment she is getting. It’s becoming clear and obvious now and there’s only so much she can take.

“The last thing I want to happen is someone of Olivia’s talent to get a serious injury because she is not being protected by the officials. It was the same as always [against Brighton], getting lumps kicked out of her. They should be penalised. The rules are the rules.”

Late equaliser for Everton [Everton 1-1 Aston Villa]

An 89th-minute strike from substitute Veatriki Sarri denied Aston Villa victory, ending their three-match winning streak under interim boss Shaun Goater.

A difficult first half of the season for Everton has seen them capitalise on the January transfer window – new signings Martina Fernandez and Hayley Ladd started, while Emma Watson, Kelly Gago and Louna Ribadeira were brought on in the second half.

Meanwhile, Villa continue their search for a permanent head coach.

Leicester’s scoring struggles persist [Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 Leicester City]

At the halfway point of the season, Leicester have scored just three goals in 11 WSL matches, failing to score in eight games. Compared with the 26 they scored last season, they are way off the pace.

Robert Vilahamn’s Spurs were rusty and didn’t have a shot until the 74th minute, but managed to do just enough to hold on to their victory after they took the lead from an early own goal.

Foxes boss Amandine Miquel said: “We missed some clear chances today. We need to be more precise technically to create more chances and have more of a finishing state of mind to push the ball inside [the net].”