Sjoeke Nüsken scored twice as Chelsea equalled the record for consecutive wins at the start of a Women’s Super League season with a 4-2 victory over Brighton.
Sonia Bompastor’s side matched Arsenal’s feat from the 2018-19 campaign of winning their first nine matches to maintain their perfect record under their manager and their five-point lead over Manchester City at the top of the table.
Nüsken opened the scoring in the 35th minute and Aggie Beever-Jones added a second before Jelena Cankovic pulled one back in a lively ending to the first half. Johanna Rytting Kaneryd restored the two-goal advantage six minutes after the restart but Brighton moved back within one again through Kiko Seike in the 71st minute, only for Nüsken to make sure of the points in injury time.
On a high-scoring day, Manchester City also hit four in a 4-0 victory over Leicester. Khadija Shaw added two more to her tally with a pair of headers, and Jess Park and Mary Fowler were on target in the second half.
Arsenal’s fine form under their interim head coach, Renée Slegers, continued with a 4-0 triumph over Aston Villa. Alessia Russo was the star of the show, scoring the first and fourth goals, with Beth Mead and Stina Blackstenius also on the scoresheet.
Manchester United were not to be outdone, also winning 4-0 against Liverpool. Liverpool did the double over their rivals last season but United dominated this match, with Elisabeth Terland and Leah Galton scoring in the first half and Dominique Janssen and Melvine Malard adding two more in the second half.
after newsletter promotion
Everton remain in trouble after losing 2-1 to Tottenham. Beth England opened the scoring in the 25th minute and then converted a penalty early in the second half after Sara Holmgaard had equalised.
