WSL and League Cup final: talking points from the weekend’s action

Hayes goes too far after defeat

Emma Hayes was asked before the Continental League Cup final whether the competition mattered more to Arsenal as it was the Gunners’ only realistic chance of silverware. She rubbished the comment but there can be little doubt about just how much it mattered to Chelsea with emotions spilling over after a gritty showdown at Molineux in which Stina Blackstenius scored the winner deep into extra time. Hayes’ shove on Jonas Eidevall and subsequent accusations of “male aggression” may have deflected from a poor performance from her team, a common tactic for losing managers, but they were also not OK. Hayes was unhappy with the way Eidevall “fronted up to Erin [Cuthbert]” but replays painted a different picture – one of Eidevall yelling at staff pitchside for delivering a ball that wasn’t the match ball when Chelsea had blocked a multi-ball system being used, Cuthbert taking the throw in, and then the player approaching Eidevall before re-entering the game. Eidevall called the label Hayes used “irresponsible” and he’s not wrong. To accuse someone of “male aggression” implies a general aggressiveness towards women and is a dangerous denigration of someone’s character which, in this instance, seemed well wide of the mark. Suzanne Wrack

A goal-of-the-season contender?

Bunny Shaw created some Easter magic with a goal-of-the-season quality strike in Manchester City’s 4-1 win over Liverpool. Having received the ball from Jess Park in midfield, she skipped past Gemma Bonner before unleashing a powerful shot into the top-right corner from at least 25 yards out. The striker then got another goal in the second half to extend her commanding lead in the WSL Golden Boot race. “I just think that when the ball bobbled up on me I thought ‘I am going to take this shot’ and then I saw it nestle in the top corner,” she said. “Overall, it was a good goal and I am happy. We said we wanted to go into the international break being top of the league and put on pressure [on Chelsea]. We said ‘let them chase us’. Overall it was a great performance.” Emillia Hawkins

Momiki impresses for Leicester

Yuka Momiki, who joined Leicester City in January, was instrumental as the Foxes walked away with a vital point in their 2-2 draw at Aston Villa. In a week where Leicester sacked their manager, Willie Kirk, for an alleged player-coach relationship, the 27-year-old pulled off an impressive performance to keep the Foxes fighting until the final whistle. The talented Japanese midfielder swiftly responded to Villa’s early lead with a composed finish just two minutes later. Her impact continued into the second half when her well-placed free-kick set up Sam Tierney to give Leicester the lead. Momiki could even have secured the three points for her team but the Villa goalkeeper, Anna Leat, pulled off an impressive save to thwart her. Rachel Daly may have equalised for Villa with 15 minutes remaining but a point was not a bad result for Leicester after a difficult week. Emily Keogh

Toone hits United milestone

Ella Toone made history at the weekend by becoming the first female player to score 50 goals for Manchester United. The midfielder netted twice as Marc Skinner’s side came from behind to earn a 4-1 win over Everton. With the score at 1-1, Toone popped up in the box to fire her team ahead in the 60th minute. She then extended United’s advantage just a few moments later with a composed tap-in. “I’m delighted to reach 50 goals,” said the 24-year-old. “To score goals for your club is always nice but to be the first person to reach 50 is really special. I’m really happy with how today went and managing to get on the scoresheet twice. Hopefully I can get many more.” EH

Defences on top at West Ham

How do you balance a compact defence with being more creative? When you do produce chances, how do you become more clinical with them? These are the recurrent themes that are affecting the teams from sixth place down in the WSL. The goalless encounter between West Ham and Brighton was a prime example of these issues. Both women’s teams are young in their history and both have had trouble in imprinting their style on the league. Rehanne Skinner’s high-pressing West Ham produced gilt-edged chances that they just couldn’t take. Brighton, in contrast, only managed two on target despite having better control of the ball than in recent weeks. Both teams are still struggling to find the magic formula to make all aspects of their game come together. Sophie Downey