🔗 Share this article Manchester City Three-Nil Man United: Hemp scores in Manchester City dominant win. Similar to Storm Claudia swept through the northern region the prior day, the home side swept the visitors away at the Etihad. It was a statement three-nil victory for their manager's side owing to goals from Rebecca Knaak, Bunny Shaw and Hemp. It was a result that firmly established their title credentials as they consolidated their place at the WSL pinnacle. Successive Setbacks for Manchester United This result marked consecutive Women's Super League setbacks for Marc Skinner’s side for the initial occasion since last May, putting them seven points off the league leaders with their championship aspirations severely dented. United’s capacity to balance league and European football with a thin team has been a frequently analyzed issue since they qualified for the UCL. Reviewing the schedule, it always seemed this was the period that would seriously challenge this capability. Unfortunately for the away side, they seemed weary throughout, the historic win against Paris Saint-Germain clearly having had an impact. Team Changes Marc Skinner had tried to freshen things up with a a few adjustments. Ella Toone, Terland, Janssen and Leah Galton all added freshness, although the exclusion of the high-performing Malard to the substitutes was questioned. Manchester City, in comparison, have no similar workload concerns. Jeglertz made a single alteration from their most recent win over Everton with Hemp making her return to the lineup since healing from a physical setback. Dominant First Half The trouble started to build for the United boss and his team from the opening minute. This was a demonstration of the quality from City whose dynamic forward line controlled and pulled the visitors apart with a excellent first half display that saw them score three goals in under half an hour. This put the hosts firmly in control and saw the visitors disorganized. Before this fixture, the away side had conceded just six in this WSL season but they collapsed in the presence of Manchester City's offensive ingenuity. Early Chances The early indicators came quickly when Vivianne Miedema used her physicality to muscle Zigiotti off the ball, only to drag her shot past the post. Hemp was at the center of everything in the beginning, taking advantage of the space left by Riviere down United’s wing. Her crosses were creating danger and led to an opportunity for Yui Hasegawa that Anna Sandberg scrambled off the line. United had a number of forays forward, their direct style giving them choices in the flanks but they could not test Ayaka Yamashita. City, in the meantime, dominated the ball, taunting their rivals and trying to draw them out of their structure. Scoring Spree They turned chances into goals with almost half an hour played when Aoba Fujino won the hosts a set-piece. A delivery to the back post was nodded across goal by Bunny Shaw for Rebecca Knaak to nod home. It was Manchester City's 7th header of the season. They increased their cushion with two more goals just before the interval. When Rose was permitted to advance through the center from central defence, the play widened for City. The influential Casparij picked the ball up on the right side before delivering a pinpoint low cross for Shaw to force home. Four minutes later, they had a additional score after a rapid change in possession saw Hemp given the room to strike a shot home from range. Final Period The clearest change came from the United manager at the break as Malard entered for Elisabeth Terland but by this time it was futile to change the course of the contest. Ex- City player Jess Park came nearest, striking the woodwork, but the visitors were lacking in ideas and were unable to produce a one shot on goal. The hosts, on the other hand, could have extended their advantage when a delightful Miedema long ball sent Bunny Shaw away only for her to fluff her lines but it mattered little to the winning team. After failing to beat any opponent who finished above them last season, Jeglertz’s side now have wins against Arsenal and Manchester United to place them in a favorable position after nine matches.