LAYING DOWN THE LAUR
We’ve made a title statement says Hemp
LAUREN HEMP says Manchester City sent out a message in the WSL title race after moving level on points with leaders Chelsea.
City reacted to the table-toppers’ victory over Arsenal on Friday by sweeping away struggling Brighton.
First-half goals from Hemp and Mary Fowler put the visitors in charge before Khadija Shaw and Laura Coombs doubled the lead with Lee Geum-min hitting a late consolation.
The win moved City level on points with Chelsea, who head the table on goal difference – and was the perfect response after back-to-back cup exits.
City forward Hemp said: “I thought we were really relentless.
“Something we have maybe struggled with is being consistent and making chances and putting them away. I thought we did that today.
“We were unfortunate to concede and obviously goal difference is going to be important.
“It was important we bounced back and really put a statement out to the league and we did that by scoring the four goals.”
And Hemp insists the title race is bringing out the best in Gareth Taylor’s side. The England international added: “It’s really exciting. You come into games knowing every game is a must-win and you have to score as many goals as you can. It’s so exciting for us as a group and the confidence in the group is massive.”
The win was City’s 10th successive league success but boss Taylor admitted his satisfaction at his side’s display was tempered by the failure to reclaim top spot.
He said: “The frustrating thing today is if we don’t concede and we get one at the end then we go top of the league outright.
“We were top of the league early on this season, then were six points behind. To claw that back to where we are now has been a phenomenal effort from the team.”
Brighton boss Mikey Harris said: “I would like the players to believe in themselves a little bit more. I certainly believe in them as a group. In the last WSL game we went away from home and scored seven goals which is an incredible achievement.
“I think we had some really good moments today so we will look to build on them going into Leicester next week.”
Both City and Chelsea have 40 points from 16 games, with thirdplaced Arsenal six points adrift.