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Just as Storm Claudia hit the northern region the previous evening, Manchester City swept Manchester United away at the Etihad. It was a convincing three goal victory for the City coach's side thanks to goals from Knaak, Shaw and Lauren Hemp. It was a display that truly announced their title credentials as they reinforced their standing at the WSL pinnacle.

Consecutive Defeats for United

This result represented back-to-back league defeats for the United manager's side for the initial occasion since last May, leaving them seven points off the table toppers with their title hopes in serious doubt.

Manchester United's capability to juggle league and European soccer with a limited roster has been a widely debated topic since they qualified for the European competition. Considering the fixture list, it always felt like this was the matchday that would truly test this ability. Regrettably for the away side, they appeared weary throughout, the historic win against the French side clearly having had an impact.

Team Changes

Skinner had attempted to freshen things up with a a few alterations. Ella Toone, Elisabeth Terland, Janssen and Galton all brought energy, although the exclusion of the in-form Malard to the substitutes raised a few eyebrows.

Manchester City, in contrast, have no similar workload worries. Andrée Jeglertz made a single alteration from their most recent win over Everton with Lauren Hemp making her first start since recovering from injury.

Overpowering Start

The storm clouds started to gather for the United boss and his team from the opening minute. This was a exhibition of the strength from Manchester City whose potent attack controlled and pulled the visitors apart with a excellent initial 45 minutes performance that saw them put three past the keeper in under half an hour.

This put the hosts in a commanding position and had Manchester United all at sea. In advance of this fixture, United had let in just a handful in this league campaign but they collapsed in the wake of City’s creative prowess.

Opening Threats

The warning signs came early when Vivianne Miedema used her power to push Julia Zigiotti off the ball, only to send her shot off target. Hemp was at the center of everything in the beginning, taking advantage of the room left by Riviere down United’s right side. Her passes were creating danger and led to an attempt for Hasegawa that Sandberg cleared off the line.

United had a number of sorties forward, their straightforward approach giving them options in the wings but they could not test Yamashita. City, meanwhile, controlled possession, probing their rivals and trying to pull them out of their defensive shape.

Scoring Spree

They turned chances into goals with almost half an hour played when Fujino won the hosts a corner. A ball to the back post was headed across goal by Bunny Shaw for Knaak to score. It was City’s 7th headed goal of the term.

They extended their cushion with another pair of goals just before the half-time. When Rose was able to drive through the center from defense, the field became spacious for City. The influential Kerstin Casparij collected the pass on the right side before providing a accurate ground pass for Shaw to force home. Shortly later, they had a third after a quick shift in the ball saw Hemp allowed the room to fire a shot home from range.

After the Break

The most obvious substitution came from the United manager at the break as Malard was introduced for Terland but by this time it was ineffective to change the course of the game. Former Manchester City player Jess Park came most likely to score, rattling the post, but the visitors were creatively abject and did not manage to record a solitary shot on goal.

The hosts, in contrast, could have added to their lead when a excellent Miedema through ball sent Shaw away only for her to fail to convert but it was insignificant to the winning team. After failing to defeat any side who placed above them in the prior term, City's side now have wins against Arsenal and Manchester United to put them in a favorable position after the opening fixtures.