McCabe shines as Arsenal sweep aside Everton to stay on top of WSL

Katie McCabe delivered another stunning performance to help Arsenal extend their perfect Women’s Super League start with a 3-0 win over Everton.

The left-back created multiple chances and scored a screamer to put her team ahead. Arsenal’s fifth straight win leaves them three points clear of Chelsea and Tottenham at the top of the table. Chelsea beat Leicester 2-0 on Sunday but Spurs surrendered their 100% record, losing 2-1 at Brighton.

Arsenal and Everton started fairly evenly, getting settled into the match. There were early chances for Nikita Parris and Vivianne Miedema but Everton saw them off cleanly and started to retain possession. The game slowed midway through the first half but then came the Arsenal onslaught.

Kim Little found acres of space, only for Rikke Sevecke to dispossess Arsenal’s captain clinically. Miedema fired yards wide shortly after but Everton’s defence held stronguntil McCabe struck a perfect ball that curled on target and sailed over the stretching arm of the goalkeeper Sandy MacIver.

Jonas Eidevall’s side were then rocket-propelled in attack, with chances flooding in, notably from Noëlle Maritz. It was not long before Everton’s afternoon went from bad to worse as McCabe drilled in a corner and Lotte Wubben-Moy doubled the hosts’ lead. There was a heart-in-mouth moment as Everton’s Gabby George, who returned to action in February after a year out with injury, remained on the floor after the corner but thankfully she was able to continue.

Everton almost clawed one back before the interval with the ball just going beyond Toni Duggan but the second half saw more Arsenal dominance as the visitors conceded two early corners and Leah Williamson was ever dependable in defence, leading from the back and staving off Everton pressure.

Although Everton did not put in a bad performance, they were not clinical enough. It summed up their afternoon when Izzy Christiansen attempted to clear her lines, slipped to her knees and gifted the ball straight back to Arsenal.

Heading into the closing 30 minutes, Arsenal threw everything at Everton, forcing MacIver into two sensational saves from Tobin Heath and McCabe. The goalkeeper continued to display her skill, blocking a strike from Beth Mead, but her ability was not replicated elsewhere and Everton failed to register a shot on target in the second half.

Arsenal kept pressing and Frida Maanum scored the goal of the match. Standing outside the box, she smashed a shot in the top left-hand corner, with MacIver unable to do anything to stop it.

Arsenal were title favourites before this fixture and another dominant performance underlined those credentials.

source: theguardian.com