**Everton shock Manchester City at Walton Hall Park thanks to first half goals from Lucy Hope and Sara Holmgaard. Gareth Taylor struggled to inject energy into his injury riddled side as they failed to look threatening against the Toffees.**
An injury-struck Manchester City side were forced to field their best possible eleven with an onslaught of key stars missing from the squad. Captain Alex Greenwood remains out of the matchday squad, but head coach Gareth Taylor said the injury may “not be as serious” as initially imagined. Lauren Hemp and Bunny Shaw also remain absent from the squad, with Mary Fowler and Auba Fujino leading the line.
Everton face injury turmoil of their own, with a long list of players absent from the matchday squad. The Toffees were boosted with the midweek news that Karen Holmgaard has returned to the pitch, but is not yet ready to play.
The Lineups
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**EVE:** Brosnan; Payne, Vanhaevermaet, Finnigan, Hope, Holmgaard; Payne, Hayashi, Wheeler, Lawley; Snoeijs
**MCI:** Kheating; Casparij, Aleixandri, Kennedy, Ouahabi; Hasegawa, Roord, Park, Blindkilde Brown; Fowler, Fujino
The Action
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The game commenced in cagey fashion at Walton Hall Park, as Everton sat back and allowed Man City to control the possession in the opening stages.
Everton had their best chance of the opening stages when Katja Snoeijs stormed forward in possession. Alanna Kennedy was left in the dust, but Snoeijs fired her strike way off target.
The _Toffees_ liked their chances in the 24th minute, as Toni Payne streamed forward on the counter-attack. Payne had both Kennedy and Aleixandri beat for pace, but her attempt broke down at the final action as she was unable to produce a hearty shot.
Neither side were able to produce any threat in the opening half an hour, with City having just two shots partnered with Everton’s one.
City’s lazy marking was punished by the hosts, as Sara Holmgaard swung in a brilliant cross into the area. Lucy Hope met the ball with a leap, sending her header into the bottom-left corner for the opener.
[Embed from Getty Images](http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/2190052853)
Everton had the chance to double their advantage just minutes later as a ball over the top saw Toni Payne one-on-one with Kheating in the central area. The 29-year-old was her own worst enemy as she overthought the moment and took her touch too wide before being shut down by Kheating.
Another display of atrocious defending by City allowed Everton to split the side wide open as Melissa Lawley put an impressive ball toward the edge of the box. Honoka Hayashi was calm on the bal as she fired her strike into the bottom left corner to give the Toffees the 2-0 lead.
The second half was much of the same, as Man City struggled to look threatening across all fronts. Jess Park and Mary Fowler failed to inject any energy into the City side, as Everton set up well to nullify any threats.
City looked desperate to get one back as Chloe Kelly swung in a threatening cross, but Fujino placed a brainless foul on Courtney Brosnan to snuff out her side’s threat.
The visitors were awarded a late glimpse of hope as Karoline Olesen pulled back Yui Hasegawa to give away a penalty in the 87th minute. Mary Fowler’s bullet strike rattled the net to get one back for City in the dying moments.
Brian Sørensen should be applauded for the performance at Walton Hall Park, as the Everton head coach managed to set his side up tactically well to combat Man City. Everton were patient with their press, and looked incredibly threatening on the counter-attack. Despite being on the wrong side of the possession, it was a well-deserved win for the Toffees at home.
_The Halfway Line_ Player of the Match: Sara Holmgaard
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