London City Lionesses taught a lesson in ruthlessness as the champions weather the storm
· Yahoo Sports
London City Lionesses had the bit between their teeth. They went at the reigning Women’s Super League champions Manchester City like a hurricane, tearing at them from all sides.
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Within 60 seconds Lucia Corrales was sprinting down Manchester City’s left. Jana Fernandez went on a rampaging run only for her shot to veer wide, Grace Geyoro skied the ball over the bar from close range, while visiting defender Rebecca Knaak took the full force of Daniela Arques’ sweetly connected strike on her head.
Still they came. Fernandez stormed in at the back post only to miss the target, and then Isobel Goodwin had the best chance of them all, only for centre-back Jade Rose to stand in her way.
London City were suffocating Manchester City, pinning them back and forcing high turnovers. They regained possession in the final third more than any team in the first half of a WSL game this season, according to Opta. But they had nothing to show for it. At half-time, they should have been ahead, but only two of their 12 shots — nine of which came from inside the box — had been on target.
Manchester City weathered the storm and, after the interval, taught London City a lesson: take your chances, otherwise you will be punished.
The difference between the two sides was efficiency. When Lauren Hemp threaded a ball through to Bunny Shaw in the 53rd minute, she pounced. Fernandez’s brilliant near-post header 18 minutes from the end was just reward for her side’s efforts but, two minutes later, the visitors reminded their hosts of that all-important lesson.
They broke their opponents’ press, hit on the transition quickly, and Lauren Hemp’s finish was a dagger to London City’s hopes.
Even if their team is not on song, nine times out of 10, Shaw and Hemp still deliver: the result of a foundation built over five years of playing alongside each other in the same team.
London City have not struggled to score this season, as shown by their recent 6-1 thrashing of Tottenham Hotspur, but none of those goals came from a No 9.
On Sunday they showed they had the capabilities to beat any WSL side. A fine double save from Mary Earps, starting her first WSL match this season, kept Manchester City at bay in the first half, but their defence was cohesive, their midfield fluid and dominant, while their wingers pose back lines different problems with their movement and pace. They are short of options at centre-back, admittedly, but Maria Perez — usually a midfielder — is covering very well.
The issue is they’re missing an out-and-out centre-forward to take the chances they create.
Very few teams have a player like Shaw. Indeed, Chelsea struggled to sign a striker in the summer and eventually decided that Melvine Malard was their best option. London City recruited Nicole Anyomi from Frankfurt, but the 26-year-old has taken time to get up to speed, scoring just once in six matches. Freya Godfrey can play up front too, but Goodwin got the nod on Sunday after impressing with her midweek hat-trick against Crystal Palace.
Exposing Manchester City, however, is a very different prospect.
Goodwin failed to take her chances, and her replacement, Ayomi, made little impact after coming on just after the hour mark. London City’s xG of 3.1 was the highest in a WSL home defeat since the 2021-22 season. They dominated the game, as shown below in the threat timeline and territory charts, while the high position of their passing network points to their underlying aggression.
But they ended the afternoon with nothing to show for it.
In contrast to Manchester City, London City have assembled a star-studded side who have only played together in this league for two months.
According to coach Eder Maestre, the difference came down to maturity. That may come as a surprise given he has a three-time Ballon d’Or winner, World Cup winners, a Champions League top goalscorer and several experienced internationals at his disposal. But he was referring to the collective maturity of a newly assembled team in only its second WSL season.
“They (Manchester City) were more used to being in that kind of position,” said Maestre. “When you have this consistency and you are very used to playing these kinds of games, you have more experience. That’s why maybe we have extra nervousness in the moments that we need to be more clinical.”
Ahead of the match, Maestre somewhat surprisingly described this meeting as a “game changer in terms of creating a new chapter at this club” and one which they would approach like a “final”.
But as Manchester City’s WSL-winning manager Andree Jeglertz knows, a season is not defined by one game. Instead, it is about finding different levels to win week after week. His side suffered the onslaught and took the few chances they had. “They are a great team and will test a lot of teams,” said Jeglertz of the hosts. “But to contest you need to compete for the whole season and in other competitions. Then we can talk about it.”
When asked how close his team are to the finished article, Maestre added: “In terms of performance, we are there.”
London City did not make a statement with the result, but Sunday’s display shows they can go toe-to-toe with the best and stretch them. The question is whether they can sustain such performances to secure Champions League qualification.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
London City Lionesses LFC, Manchester City WFC, Women's Soccer, Women's Super League
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