Manchester City extend their lead over Chelsea in the WSL standings after defeating Everton, who are facing difficulties.

Manchester City extended their lead at the top of the Women’s Super League (WSL) with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Everton on Saturday. The hosts continued their dominance over Everton, having won all 15 of their previous encounters in the WSL.

City started the game strongly, with Lauren Hemp’s cross causing trouble for Everton’s defense early on. Yui Hasegawa had a chance to open the scoring, but her shot sailed over the bar. However, it didn’t take long for City to break the deadlock. Khadija Shaw capitalized on a defensive error from Everton’s Justine Vanhaevermaet, stealing the ball on the edge of the area and slotting it past goalkeeper Courtney Brosnan.

Everton’s woes continued when Brosnan required treatment, but she bravely soldiered on. Despite City’s dominance, Everton managed to reach halftime with just a one-goal deficit, thanks to some resolute defending.

After the break, Everton came out with more attacking intent. Khiara Keating was called into action to deny a shot from substitute Piemonte, while City’s forward came close to doubling their lead with a header that narrowly missed the target. However, City eventually found their second goal through Lauren Hemp, who combined with Laura Combs before cutting inside from the right and finding the bottom corner.

Everton responded quickly, with Hanna Bennison scoring a stunning goal that rattled in off the crossbar just four minutes later. City pushed for a third goal, but Brosnan made an excellent save to deny Combs’ effort towards the corner. Despite both teams’ efforts, no further goals were scored.

With this victory, Manchester City now sit three points clear at the top of the WSL, ahead of second-placed Chelsea. Everton, on the other hand, remain in ninth place with 14 points, eight points clear of the relegation zone.

The majority of WSL games this weekend will take place on Sunday, including Arsenal versus Tottenham, Bristol City against Brighton, Liverpool’s trip to Aston Villa, West Ham hosting Manchester United, and Chelsea’s away fixture against Leicester City.