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Much like the recent storm tore through the north-west the previous evening, City overwhelmed the visitors aside at the Etihad Stadium. It was a convincing three-nil triumph for their manager's side thanks to goals from Knaak, Bunny Shaw and Hemp. It was a display that clearly signaled their leadership claims as they strengthened their position at the WSL pinnacle.

Successive Losses for Manchester United

This outcome represented back-to-back league losses for Skinner's side for the first time since last May, putting them seven points off the table toppers with their title hopes severely dented.

United’s capability to balance league and continental football with a thin team has been a frequently analyzed subject since they secured entry to the Champions League. Considering the fixture list, it always appeared this was the matchday that would seriously challenge this ability. Unfortunately for the visitors, they appeared fatigued from start to finish, the memorable win against the French side clearly having left its mark.

Tactical Shifts

Marc Skinner had sought to rotate the squad with a handful of changes. Ella Toone, Elisabeth Terland, Dominique Janssen and Leah Galton all added energy, although the omission of the high-performing Malard to the bench raised a few eyebrows.

City, in comparison, have no similar loading issues. Andrée Jeglertz made a single alteration from last week’s win over the Toffees with Hemp making her first start since healing from injury.

Commanding Opening Period

The trouble started to build for Skinner and his side from the opening minute. This was a demonstration of the strength from City whose potent forward line played with and pulled the visitors apart with a superb initial 45 minutes performance that saw them put three past the keeper in just over twenty minutes.

This put the hosts completely dominant and saw the visitors disorganized. In advance of this encounter, the away side had conceded just few in this domestic competition but they fell apart in the presence of Manchester City's creative prowess.

Initial Opportunities

The omens came early when Vivianne Miedema used her strength to bundle Zigiotti off the ball, only to drag her shot past the post. Hemp was at the center of everything from the start, exploiting the space left by Jayde Riviere down the visitors' right side. Her passes were posing a threat and led to an opportunity for Hasegawa that Anna Sandberg cleared off the line.

United had several forays forward, their long-ball tactic giving them options in the flanks but they could not challenge Yamashita. Manchester City, on the other hand, dominated possession, probing their opponents and trying to lure them of their defensive shape.

Goals Galore

They turned chances into goals with almost the first period played when Aoba Fujino won the home team a corner. A ball to the back post was nodded across goal by Bunny Shaw for Rebecca Knaak to head in. It was Manchester City's seventh goal from a cross of the term.

They increased their lead with two more goals just before the break. When Jade Rose was permitted to advance through the middle from defense, the pitch became spacious for the hosts. The prominent Casparij picked the ball up on the right side before providing a pinpoint driven ball for Bunny Shaw to force home. Shortly later, they had a third goal after a rapid change in possession saw Lauren Hemp given the room to drive a shot home from outside the box.

After the Break

The clearest change came from Skinner at the interval as Malard was introduced for Terland but by this time it was ineffective to shift the momentum of the match. Former Manchester City player Jess Park came most likely to score, striking the upright, but the away team were lacking in ideas and were unable to record a solitary shot on goal.

The hosts, meanwhile, could have increased their lead when a superb Miedema pass sent Shaw away only for her to fail to convert but it mattered little to the winning team. After failing to overcome any side who ended above them last season, City's side now have wins against the Gunners and Manchester United to position them in a commanding standing after the opening fixtures.