Manchester City and Chelsea were the real winners, as Arsenal and Manchester United played out a goalless draw and lost further ground in the title race. United played the final 25 minutes with 10 players after Jayde Riviere was sent off for a second bookable offence, a late challenge on Caitlin Foord, but United were able to see out the remainder of the game without succumbing to Arsenal’s late pressure.
It means Manchester City could be 10 points better off than third-placed Arsenal by the end of the weekend – City play Everton on Sunday – while Manchester United are a point further behind. With 10 games remaining for Arsenal, that sort of deficit feels significant.
Arsenal have lost one league game this term, but this was their fifth draw and a lack of a ruthless edge was their downfall again. It was a match that had promised much beforehand, on the WSL’s return after the winter break, but ultimately did little to warm the crowd of 37,627 on such a cold day.
The game came a day after Arsenal announced their head coach, Renée Slegers, had signed a new three-and-a-half-year contract and the Dutchwoman received a warm cheer from the home crowd before kick-off. By the end, they were booing the United goalkeeper, Phallon Tullis-Joyce, for perceived time-wasting. She made a crucial save in second-half stoppage time to keep out Victoria Pelova’s low drive that had looked to creep in. That was perhaps as close as the hosts came.
