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Just as the recent storm hit the northern region the night before, Manchester City swept the visitors away at the Etihad. It was a convincing 3-0 triumph for their manager's side due to goals from Rebecca Knaak, Bunny Shaw and Hemp. It was a result that firmly established their leadership claims as they strengthened their standing at the league summit.

Consecutive Setbacks for Manchester United

This outcome marked back-to-back league setbacks for Marc Skinner’s side for the maiden instance since last May, leaving them a sizable gap off the league leaders with their title hopes severely dented.

Manchester United's capacity to manage domestic and European football with a small roster has been a hotly discussed issue since they secured entry to the European competition. Looking at the fixture list, it always appeared this was the matchday that would seriously challenge this capability. Regrettably for the visitors, they looked tired throughout, the memorable win against the French side clearly having had an impact.

Team Changes

The United manager had attempted to make changes with a several adjustments. Ella Toone, Elisabeth Terland, Janssen and Leah Galton all added freshness, although the exclusion of the high-performing Melvine Malard to the bench caused surprise.

The hosts, in comparison, have no similar fitness issues. The City coach made one adjustment from their most recent win over Everton with Lauren Hemp making her first start since returning from a physical setback.

Commanding Opening Period

The trouble started to gather for Skinner and his side from the first whistle. This was a exhibition of the strength from Manchester City whose dynamic offense played with and dismantled the opposition with a sublime initial 45 minutes display that saw them put three past the keeper in just over twenty minutes.

This left the home team firmly in control and had Manchester United all at sea. In advance of this match, the away side had conceded just a handful in this domestic competition but they collapsed in the face of City’s attacking flair.

Initial Opportunities

The omens came soon when Vivianne Miedema used her power to muscle Zigiotti off the ball, only to pull her shot wide. Hemp was at the core of everything in the beginning, exploiting the room left by Riviere down the visitors' right side. Her crosses were causing problems and led to an opportunity for Yui Hasegawa that Anna Sandberg kicked off the line.

United had a number of sorties forward, their direct style giving them options in the wide areas but they could not test the City goalkeeper. Manchester City, meanwhile, commanded the ball, probing their rivals and trying to lure them of their defensive shape.

Goals Galore

They turned chances into goals with almost the first period played when Fujino won the hosts a set-piece. A ball to the back post was headed across goal by Shaw for Rebecca Knaak to nod home. It was Manchester City's 7th goal from a cross of the campaign.

They increased their lead with two more goals just before the break. When Jade Rose was permitted to drive through the middle from the back, the field opened up for City. The influential Kerstin Casparij collected the pass on the wing before sending a accurate ground pass for Shaw to bundle home. Four minutes later, they had a additional score after a quick turnover in possession saw Hemp afforded the opportunity to strike a shot home from range.

Final Period

The primary substitution came from the United manager at the interval as Malard came on for Terland but by this time it was ineffective to change the course of the contest. Ex- Manchester City player Park came most likely to score, rattling the upright, but the away team were offensively poor and failed to register a single shot on target.

The hosts, on the other hand, could have extended their lead when a superb Vivianne Miedema through ball sent Shaw away only for her to fail to convert but it mattered little to the winning team. Previously unable to defeat any team who finished above them the previous campaign, the manager's side now have successes against the Gunners and United to position them in a favorable position after nine games.