Manchester United Women kept up their good form in the Barclays Women’s Super League on Saturday with a road win at Leicester City. It was far from a dominant performance against the Foxes, but goals early and late secured a 2-0 victory and three points to take home.
Julia Zigiotti Olme opened the scoring in the 13th minute with what looked like a cross to the back post for Lea Schuller. The curling hit just travelled above the German striker’s head and nestled into the far corner of the goal, confusing the Leicester defense, but Zigiotti immediately claimed and celebrated it once the net shook.
It was the result of a positive first half in possession for the Reds, but it didn’t result in any more big chances. The defense and midfield was able to keep the hosts at bay as well, but when Leicester did have the ball they were able to get forward quickly. United at times seemed content to just hold onto the 1-0 lead, a frustrating and recurring approach under Marc Skinner, but in truth there wasn’t too much threat from the Foxes.
The game became stagnant early in the second half, and the Foxes looked more threatening despite a lack of efforts on target, and Skinner turned to the bench shortly before the hour mark. Jayde Riviere and Fridolina Rolfo arrived in reliefe of Hanna Lundkvist and Melvine Malard, respectively, and play picked up a bit more for the Reds. Simi Awujo and Elisabeth Terland soon followed them off the bench, with the latter netting the clinching goal in the 88th.
It made for three wins in a row for United, and cemented their place in the top three for the time being. Arsenal have a game in hand below them in fourth place, but perennial champions Chelsea have slipped into third after a heavy defeat to Manchester City all but knocked them out of the title race. The Citizens, 11 points clear at the start of the weekend, look unlikely to slip up on their way to the league crown.
United return to European action this week against Atletico Madrid in the knockout stages, playing in Madrid for the first leg on Thursday.
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