Arsenal sent an emphatic warning to leaders Manchester City that the Women’s Super League title race is far from over with a thumping 7-0 win over bottom-side Leicester at the Emirates Stadium.
Stina Blackstenius and Smilla Holmberg scored two each, while Mariona Caldentey and Leah Williamson also got in on the act after Frida Maanum headed the opener on her 100th WSL appearance.
The Gunners climb above Man Utd into third, two points behind second-placed Chelsea and eight behind City. They do, however, still have two games in hand and four left to play overall.
The next comes at Brighton on Wednesday May 6 at 7.45pm, live on Sky Sports Football.
Meanwhile, the defeat confirms Leicester will finish bottom of the table and they will now compete in a relegation play-off with the third-placed WSL 2 side next month.
Wednesday 6th May 7:35pm
Kick off 7:45pm
Seventh heaven for the Gunners
Whether it was a direct result of Arsenal boss Renee Slegers resting players, including Williamson and Alessia Russo, ahead of the weekend’s Champions League semi-final second leg against Lyon, it took a while for the game to warm up in north London.
The Gunners were dominating, but it took 25 minutes for them to begin to seize control. And after they did, they did not take their foot off the gas.
Arsenal’s Smilla Holmberg celebrates scoring the fifth goal against Leicester
On her milestone evening, Maanum played a key role in the first three goals. Having opened the scoring herself, she teed up Holmberg to score her first goal since a January move from Hammarby just over two minutes later.
Emily Fox then rattled the crossbar as the hosts went for the jugular, but it was 3-0 with 41 minutes gone, when Maanum chipped the ball into Blackstenius, who converted with a deft touch. Deep into first-half stoppage time, she added another, helping Victoria Pelova’s pass into an empty net.
That was Arsenal’s 100th goal of the Slegers era, and they made it 101 just two minutes after the restart when Holmberg tapped in after being picked out by Olivia Smith.
Mariona Caldentey (left) celebrates scoring the sixth goal
Williamson also got in on the act when she powered in at the near post and, when that hit the net, it seemed the record for the biggest win in WSL history – Arsenal’s 11-1 victory over Bristol City in December 2019 – would be under serious threat with almost half an hour of the 90 still to play.
But the Gunners could afford to ease up and settle for their joint-third biggest win in the competition.
Watch the first five goals…
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Frida Maanum made it 1-0 to Arsenal
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Smilla Holmberg puts Arsenal 2-0 up
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Blackstenius scored Arsenal’s third goal
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It’s 4-0 as Blackstenius strikes again
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Holmberg adds her second for 5-0
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