Leah Galton scored a brace to help Manchester United produce one of the most comfortable football scores of the weekend in the Women’s Super League. Galton scored her seventh and eighth goals of the season on either side of the interval, while Williams and Garcia combined for a second-period double, with only one minute and seven seconds separating United’s third and fourth. The scoreline was somewhat harsh on the hosts, who fought hard but were ultimately outclassed by Skinner’s title contenders and will be left looking nervously over their shoulders – bottom club Leicester can climb out of the relegation zone at their expense if they beat fellow strugglers Reading this weekend.
Brighton hasn’t won in the WSL since November, and the club has now gone 19 league games without a clean sheet. Nevertheless, United has continued to demonstrate their WSL title credentials, scoring four goals without reply in back-to-back games. They have a large lead – and a considerably superior goal differential – over Manchester City, who play Arsenal on Sunday. After exerting only sporadic pressure in the opening exchanges, Maya Le Tissier’s raking cross-field ball found Galton in space, who won a corner.
The following set piece was skillfully handled by captain Katie Zelem and received by the head of Galton, who nodded past Lydia Williams unchallenged. Brighton came close to equalizing with a looping header from Emma Kullberg before Zelem’s in-swinging free-kick found Vilde Boe Risa precariously positioned, but the midfielder’s bullet header forced a smart reflex save from Williams.
Galton overcame the Seagulls’ resistance again in the 66th minute, beating Jorja Fox to Hannah Blundell’s searching pass, rounding Williams, and placing the ball into the net from a restricted angle. United then clinched the victory with two late goals: Williams headed home from a corner in the 86th minute, and Garcia added the fourth a minute later with a beautiful finish into the bottom corner. Garcia has now scored four goals in her previous four league outings (all as a substitute), although only played 59 minutes in total.
“I told the players that if you look at our energy to keep pushing till the 98th minute, our team runs both ways and that to me is a true sign of a squad that wants to fight for one other. They want to be successful,” Manchester United Women boss Marc Skinner. “We came here on a challenging pitch and won 4-0 as a result of our energy and attitude. It’s all about provoking the players to create energy – I can yell all I want, but if the players don’t want to do that, they shouldn’t be at Manchester United.”
“As you can see, every single one of our players is dedicated to winning the game. We score late because we want to keep moving forward. I’d like to use it today. It’s a fantastic learning opportunity,” he added. “Everyone knows how I feel about Leah [Galton]; she is, in my opinion, the best. What she can accomplish with the ball is amazing timing. She’s a fantastic player. She’s excellent.”
“It is critical that we do not allow teams to feel at ease in our stadium, and the fans play a significant role in this. We also discussed having more control over the game. This game will not define the remainder of our season. We opted to try again in the second half, which opened us up a little, but we’d rather try than not,” Brighton interim boss Amy Merricks said. “Everyone must take the lead; that is the only way we can get out of this situation. We need everyone to step up and be accountable, and it’s part of my duty to help them do so. We need to strive to get something out of every game. Today is a bit of a free hit because they are at the top of the league, but we must still go after it.”
Following the two-week international break, Manchester United hosts Arsenal in a key top-of-the-table showdown on Saturday, April 22, kick-off at 12.30 p.m., while Brighton hosts Everton in a midweek match on Wednesday, April 19, kick-off at 7 p.m.
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