Manchester City produced a Women’s Super League performance for the ages as they thrashed a bleak Chelsea side 5-1 to go eleven points clear.
A five-star performance and a hat-trick from Kerolin saw Andrée Jeglertz’s side stretch their lead at the top of the table even further to grab one hand on the Women’s Super League (WSL) title.
Sonia Bompastor’s Chelsea came into the game looking to close the gap to their title rivals to a manageable six points, but knowing a loss would more or less mean the Blues’ six-year run of titles would come to an end.
Manchester City boss Jeglertz named an unchanged eleven from the side that grabbed a late winner at London City Lionesses. Mary Fowler made her return to the squad for the first time since April 2025, after suffering an ACL injury.
Chelsea manager Bompastor made three changes from the team that were well beaten by Arsenal at Stamford Bridge last weekend. Lucy Bronze misses out on the squad altogether with a ‘minor’ injury, with Veerle Buurman coming into the team. Lauren James replaced Sam Kerr up front, as well as Keira Walsh replacing Guro Reiten, who dropped to the bench.
The Lineups
MCI: Yamashita; Rose, Knaak, Greenwood (C), Casparij; Blindkilde Brown, Hasegawa; Hemp, Miedema, Kerolin; Shaw
CHE: Hampton; Carpenter, Bright (C), Buurman, Girma, Baltimore; Cuthbert, Walsh, Kaptein; Thompson, James
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The Action
Manchester City, as expected, started the game as the better side, pressing well in the middle of the park and driving forward quickly and efficiently. It wasn’t long before Chelsea was punished, and after a string of corners that they failed to deal with, Manchester City took the lead. The ball fell to Kerolin on the edge of the box, whose deflected strike flew past Hannah Hampton into the back of the net.
It was a deserved lead for Manchester City, as Chelsea were yet to really get out of the blocks. Similar to the game against Arsenal, Chelsea were looking very passive, lacking any sort of aggressiveness with and without the ball.
Chelsea did, however, begin to venture forward and look more confident with the ball. A wonderful cross by Keira Walsh couldn’t find the on-rushing Alyssa Thompson but signalled a change in intent from Bompastor’s side. Chelsea did put the ball in the back of the net, thanks to a delicious Lauren James cross being converted by a strong header from Kaptein, but the offside flag was raised. A decision that, on reply, showed that it was the correct one.
Chelsea then continued to apply pressure through multiple corners in which Manchester City failed to pick up Kiera Walsh on the edge of the box. On both occasions, Walsh went close, forcing a good save from Ayaka Yamashita, before dragging a low, fizzed effort just wide of the left-hand post.
The pressure was short-lived, however, as Manchester City provided a gut-punching blow to Chelsea, finding the net for a second time. Kaptein lost the ball cheaply in the midfield, allowing Miedema to feed in Bunny Shaw, who totally out-muscled Naomi Girma, and finished well.
This goal would be a sign of things to come as Manchester City’s confidence really began to shine through. A samba-style backheel from Kerolin deflected just wide, signalling the start of a worrying time for Bompastor’s side.
It wasn’t long after the second half started that Manchester City grabbed their third. From a Chelsea corner, Lauren Hemp was able to feed Kerolin, who, from her own half, produced a wonderful individual goal. Using her raw pace, she cut across Keira Walsh and was composure personified as she chipped it over the onrushing Hannah Hampton. A superb goal, and nothing less than what Manchester City deserved.
The Chelsea head coach, by this point, had seen enough, making a double change immediately. Sam Kerr and Sjoeke Nüsken were brought on for Erin Cuthbert and Veerle Buurman, as Bompastor hoped these changes would help change momentum. They didn’t.
Just two minutes later, Kerolin had her hat-trick as Lauren Hemp capitalised on Ellie Carpenter being out of position, driving forward before laying it on a plate for Kerolin.
With twenty minutes to go, Chelsea did score a consolation as they showed a true bit of quality in the match for the first time. Alyssa Thompson received the ball luckily on the edge of the box, but showed real quality as she drove the ball into the bottom corner. The joy (if you can call it that) was short-lived however, as Manchester scored a fifth just 5 minutes later. Miedema was first to meet a corner, flicking it on at the front post and into the far corner. Incredibly poor by Chelsea defensively.
The rest of the game played out with Chelsea trying to ensure the humiliation didn’t go any further, not by trying to reduce the deficit but by trying not to concede, certainly new territory for Chelsea.
After subjecting Chelsea to a further 12 minutes of added time, the referee brought proceedings to a close. A wonderful afternoon for Manchester City as they really flexed their title credentials for all to see, and to many, not only won the game but also the title.
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Exquisite Kerolin highlights Man City’s star quality
Manchester City knew coming into the game they were already in an incredibly strong position to win the title. Throughout the season so far, they have been head and shoulders above the rest, with teams below them failing to gain any sort of consistency to put together a realistic challenge.
Despite this, the way in which Manchester City dominated and dispatched of the most dominant side in England over the past years, was shocking but not entirely surprising, confirming their position as the best club side in England so far this season.
Noise had been building throughout this week about how a result this week against Chelsea would more or less confirm the title was leaving the capital for the first time since 2016, pleas which they answered emphatically. A football game that at some points was samba-esque, highlighting the confidence the whole team is feeling right now.
The star of the show, however, was Kerolin. She toyed with the Chelsea defence, showcasing many parts of her game, none more so than her devastating pace on the break and composure when in front of the best goalkeeper in the world. A magnificent performance that is rightly gaining so many plaudits.
Manchester City face Arsenal next, with tests still to come. However, with the position Manchester City have put themselves in, it would take a dramatic fall off for them not to win their first title in a decade.
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Chelsea concerns laid bare by Man City humiliation
Before the game this weekend at the Etihad, to many, including the Chelsea head coach, the title was out of reach. After losing to Arsenal and Manchester City’s late winner, the points deficit was seen as too much for Chelsea to pull back.
The bigger concern now, however, is how they will come back at all, with the players on the pitch looking dejected and devoid of ideas throughout. Chelsea now finds themselves in new territory as they risk their first trophyless season since the 2018/2019 season.
The humiliation culminated in the delighted Manchester City fans chanting “easy, easy, easy” in the direction of the Chelsea bench, something that Bompastor can’t even argue with, as it was indeed too easy for Manchester City for the entire 105 minutes.
Bompastor and her sides’ attentions will now be directed solely to their Champions League campaign and their defence of their two domestic trophies. One thing is for sure, however, the performance levels of the team will have to improve drastically if they have any chance of lifting silverware at the end of the season, a task that Bompastor will not shy away from, but will not underestimate the challenge of.
Hence, this gut-wrenching blow cannot be underestimated and will lead to inevitable questions of both the team and Bompastor herself, and if she is capable of pulling it back.
The Halfway Line Player of the Match – Kerolin