FULHAM, England, Nov 14, CMC – Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw failed to get on the scoresheet as Chelsea edged Manchester City 1-0 to take over the top spot in the Women’s Super League (WSL) here on Saturday.
Shaw, who had scored in six of the previous nine games and has a league leading 12 goals, was kept in check by Chelsea’s defenders as the defending champions were beaten for the first time this season.
The home side missed countless opportunities to take the lead, but finally went ahead in first half stoppage time when Sandy Baltimore found the back of the net with a ferocious strike.
Veerle Buurman, who replaced Kadeisha Buchanan just 12 minutes into the game, played a major role in keeping Shaw at bay after she had terrorised Buchanan from the first whistle.
City threatened to find a equaliser in the second half, but found themselves reduced to 10-players after goalkeeper Ayaka Yamashita came foolishly rushing out of her area and took out Alyssa Thompson and received a straight red card.
With the win, Chelsea, who is now the only unbeaten team, moved to 26 points, one more than second-placed City.
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