Man City survive Brighton fightback to stay top as Lauren James fires Chelsea to 6-2 rout of Spurs

Manchester City remain two points clear at the top of the Women’s Super League after surviving a second-half scare against Brighton, while Chelsea hammered Tottenham 6-2 at Stamford Bridge to stay in close pursuit.

City looked in total control after racing into a three-goal lead inside 17 minutes, Khadija Shaw netting twice and summer signing Niamh Charles marking her first goal for the club. Brighton refused to fold, however, pulling two back through Olivia Garcia and Caitlin Hayes to set up a nervy finish.

Head coach Andree Jeglertz was candid about his side’s drop in intensity. “I don’t think the players did it on purpose, becoming more comfortable,” he said. “It wasn’t the same speed on our passes or supporting each other in the same way. We let them in by going down a couple of percent. They scored two goals which was unnecessary. I was a little bit annoyed at half-time.” Jeglertz added that his message was simply to return to what had worked from the first whistle, and City duly held on.

At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea were level at the break after Matilda Vinberg cancelled out an early advantage, but three goals in nine second-half minutes settled the contest emphatically. Lauren James and Ellie Carpenter both finished with braces, while substitutes Maika Hamano and Sjoeke Nusken also got on the scoresheet.

The result came in Sonia Bompastor’s 50th WSL match in charge, and the Chelsea head coach highlighted the impact of her squad’s depth. “I was convinced coming into this game we would need players who would come in and bring a big impact and fresh legs,” she said. “It’s good when you have depth in the squad, a lot of players available, and the quality of the players who are coming in.”

London City Lionesses completed a winning weekend for the top three, edging Everton 2-1. Delphine Cascarino and England winger Freya Godfrey gave the Lionesses a comfortable half-time lead, before substitute Holly McNamara headed in with 20 minutes remaining to set up a tense finish.

Manchester United climbed to fifth with a third consecutive victory, beating bottom side Charlton 3-1. Ella Toone and Andrea Medina put United two up inside the opening quarter of an hour before Charlton pulled one back.