American women were in action over the weekend as the Women’s Super League opened its season, with Phallon Abaigeal Tullis-Joyce and Catarina Macario on the winning end for their respective teams.
Manchester United 4-0 Leicester City
It was a comfortable day for the Red Devils as they put four past Leicester City in a dominant win at Leigh Sports Village.
Goalkeeper Phallon Abaigeal Tullis-Joyce was between the sticks for Manchester in a rather relaxed day, as she only made two saves and completed 84 percent passing. As for Leicester, midfielder Celeste Boureille started and played 90 minutes, completing 73 percent passing, two duels, and making 10 clearances.
The hosts opened the scoring in the 13th minute through Ella Toone as she was teed up for a shot by Elisabeth Terland. Terland grabbed the team’s second in the 25th minute when she headed in a cross from Jayde Riviere.
United was in attack mode for the entire game, and they scored more in the second half. Melvine Malard struck for the team in the 73rd minute when she headed in a pass from Dominique Janssen. The Frenchwoman scored her second in the 87th minute with a curling shot into the back of the net.
The win puts Manchester at the top of the Super League standings.
Chelsea 2-1 Manchester City
Chelsea got their title defense off to a fine start as they were able to seal the win over Manchester City at Stamford Bridge.
Catarina Macario came off the bench to play 28 minutes for the Blues, completing 64 percent passing, winning two duels, and making one tackle. Naomi Girma was ruled out of the game due to a calf injury.
It was a special day for the Londoners as they presented new signing Alyssa Thompson from Angel City FC, a sign that they are determined to win all the trophies they can this season.
The hosts broke the scoreless deadlock in the 31st minute when Aggie Beever-Jones steered in a cross from Ellie Carpenter.
Maika Hamano doubled Chelsea’s lead in the 64th minute. Macario sent the ball out wide to Wieke Kaptein on the right side. The Dutchwoman then fired a cross to the center that allowed the Japanese international to slot home.
Manchester City received a lifeline in the 70th minute when Chelsea defender Niamh Charles headed the ball in her own goal from a free kick. However, in the end, the champions did more than enough to secure the win.
Chelsea sits in fourth place after the first game of the season.
Notes
Elsewhere in the Super League, Emily Fox went the distance for Arsenal as they came away with a 4-1 win over London City Lionesses.
Madison Haley played the full 90 for Brighton as they shared the points with Aston Villa in a 0-0 tie.
Follow Yanks Abroad on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn for news and views on Americans playing the beautiful game worldwide, and the U.S. national teams.
