Match report: Everton 0-4 Manchester City
Suzanne Wrack was at Goodison Park to see Manchester City get their WSL season off to a winning start in a fairly straightforward stroll around Goodison Park.
Post-match analysis: “For all that they’ve been hammered here Everton really could have made it a much closer game if they’d made the most of their midfield build-up play,” writes David Wall. “They’ve had some excellent chances but their finishing has been poor. And they’ve been wide open at the back from almost the first minute, even if it did take half an hour for City to take advantage. That’s made it a really entertaining match but the defence should be a worry for Everton for the season.”
Post-match huddles at Goodison Park after @ManCityWomen outclassed @EvertonWomen 4-0 in @talkSPORT first @BarclaysFAWSL game. Arsenal v Chelsea tomorrow pic.twitter.com/C0kZcwHB0h
— Nigel Adderley (@nadderley) September 4, 2021
Elsewhere in the WSL: Aston Villa have got off to a winning start, beating Leicester by the odd goal of three.
Full-time: Everton 0-4 Manchester City
Peep! Peep! Peeeeeeeeep! It’s all over at Goodison Park, where Everton’s dreams of an opening day win at Goodison Park and on live TV have been cruelly dashed by Manchester City. Vicky Losada, Janine Beckie, Bunny Shaw and Steph Houghton got the goals in a City win that could scarcely have been more straightforward.
90+4 min: Claire Emslie controls a cross at the far post but has her shot from a narrow angle charged down.
90+3 min: Hayley Raso receives treatment after a coming-together with Danielle Turner.
90+2 min: Everton’s Nathalie Bjorn gets the first yellow card of the game for leaving one in on Georgia Stanway.
89 min: Janine Beckie is awarded the man of the match gong by former England goalkeeper Rachel Brown-Finnis, who is on co-comms duty for the BBC. On the evidence of the first half alone, I’d have given it to Vicky Losada but the Spaniard has had a quiet second half.
88 min: Everton try to scramble the ball home at the far post from a corner. Danielle Seveckie can’t force it over the line and Taieb gets down to save.
86 min: That Everton triple-substitution from a couple of minutes ago: Gauvin, Nicoline Sorensen and Lucy Graham on for Toni Duggan, Anna Anvegard and Aurora Galli.
84 min: From an Everton free-kick, their newly introduced substitute Valerie Gauvin has a far post header tipped on to the bar. That’s a fine effort from Gauvin and a great save from Karima Taieb. Ah, the flag goes up: offside. I’m not so sure it was.
83 min: Steph Houghton hooks the ball over her own bar to put a Claire Emslie cross from the right out for a corner. Everton make a triple-substitution before it’s taken, more of which anon.
81 min: Manchester City substitution: Sunderland’s finest female footballer Jill Scott on. Laura Coombs off.
78 min: Assuming Everton go on to lose this match, they’ll have a chance to bounce back next week. It’s a far from easy second game for them - away to champions Chelsea. The fixture generator has not been kind to Willie Kirk’s side.
77 min: Turner and Emslie combine down the left touchline for Everton but the latter’s cross is headed back towards her.
76 min: Vicky Losada is fouled by Everton’s Danielle Turner and City have possession again. They’re in complete control of this game.
74 min: Manchester City double-substitution: Lauren Hemp and Alanna Kennedy on, Alex Greenwood and Janine Beckie off.
71 min: Raso is penalised for a foul on Christiansen, followed by a bit of “afters”. There certainly seems to be some sort of beef between the Australian and her former team-mates. There appears to be no love whatsoever lost between them.
69 min: For Everton, Anvegard canters down the left flank, cuts inside and beats her woman before sending a cross into the City penalty area. It’s cleared.
GOAL! Everton 0-4 Manchesater City (Houghton 67)
What a goal! That’s wonderful from Steph Houghton, who whips the ball up over the wall and into the top left-hand corner. In the Everton goal, Sandy MacIver didn’t move.
Updated
66 min: Ellen White draws a foul from Bjorn and City have a free-kick just in front of the Everton penalty area, almost dead centre.
65 min: Man City double-substitution: Ellen White and Georgia Stanway on for Bunny Shaw and Caroline Weir.
64 min: Janine Beckie goes super close, curling a shot from a tight angle on to the angle of post and cross-bar.
63 min: Neat play from City as Caroline Weir and Janine Beckie link up down the inside left. Weir’s pull-back is cleared.
61 min: Bennison picks out Izzy Christiansen with a cxurled through ball into the middle. She shapes to shoot with only the City goalkeeper to beat. Offside!
59 min: Everton have switched to a 4-3-3 in this second half and it’sd serving them well. THey’re much improved on the second half of their first half performance but City have taken their foot off the gas a little. They have a home appointment with Real Madrid in the Champions League next Wednesday.
56 min: Hayley Raso is getting some seriously rough-house treatment from her former Everton teammates on her return to Goodison Park. Gabrielle George is the latest to reacquaint herself with the Australian, barging her into a shallow pit in front of a pitchside advertising hoarding as the pair contested a 50-50 ball. No foul is given.
Updated
55 min: Danielle Turner takes the free-kick, shooting hard and low towards the bottom left-hand corner. Karima Taieb saves superbly.
Updated
54 min: Laura Coombs trips Bennison just outside the City penalty area to concede a free-kick just on the D, a little right of centre.
Updated
53 min: A long pass down the left touchline by Beckie rolls out of play, despite the best attempts of Demi Stokes, who couldn’t quite get to it in time.
52 min: Caroline Weir draws a foul and wins a free-kick for City not too far inside her own half.
51 min: City corner. It’s overhit by Greenwood, who sends the ball out of play for an Everton throw-in.
50 min: Emslie kicks the ball long from deep but Houghton and Greenwood clear up for City a few yards inside their own half.
47 min: A no-look pass down the inside left by Claire Emslie sends Danielle Turner on her way. Her cross-shot is tipped over the bar by City goalkeeper Karima Taieb. Nothing comes of the ensuing corner.
Second half: Everton 0-3 Manchester City
46 min: Play resumes with Everton making a double-substitution at the break. Hanna Bennison and Claire Emslie are on for Kenza Dali and Megan Finnegan.
Half-time: Everton 0-3 Manchester City
Peep! A game that had been quite even has the look of a rout about it as the players go in for the break. Everton have been giving Manchester City far too much space down the flanks and some calamitous defending on the part of the home side hasn’t helped their cause. City look home and hosed already on the back of goals from Vicky Losada, Janine Beckie and Bunny Shaw.
Updated
45+1 min: MacIver fumbles a low Raso cross from the left but manages to clutch the ball to her chest at the second attempt.
44 min: Janine Beckie isn’t quite quick enough to run on to a weighted through ball down the centre and Everton goalkeeper Sandy MacIver leathers the ball clear.
40 min: One suspects Everton boss Willie Kirk will be incandescent with rage. Having started so well, Everton have completely collapsed and concede from a throw-in. City advanced down the left through Hayley Raso, who drilled the ball across the face of goal towards Shaw, whose task could scarcely have been more straightforwad. She marks her debut with a tap-in from six yards.
GOAL! Everton 0-3 Manchester City (Shaw 38)
Bunny makes it three! Everton are on the ropes and gift City another goal.
Updated
38 min: That was criminally bad defending from Everton’s defenders, who gave the ball away out by the right touchline, then more or less ushered Janine Beckie towards goal, allowing her to cut inside, roam across the edge of their penalty area and shoot into the bottom left-hand corner.
GOAL! Everton 0-2 Manchester City (Beckie 36)
Janine Beckie doubles City’s lead! The Canadian is given the freedom of the park by Everton’s defence to score.
Updated
33 min: Vicky Losada, the goalscorer, looks a real cut above any of the other players on the pitch. She has a great touch, a fine passing range and a bit of a wand of a right foot. She won the Champions League with Barcelona last season before moving to City.
32 min: Toni Duggan appeals for a foul after a coming-together a few yards outside the City penalty area but referee Kirsty Dowle is having none of it. Manchester City clear.
28 min: That was a fine goal from Losada. The ball came her way in a crowded penalty area after good work down the right by City. She took a touch and hit a surface-to-air scorcher goalwards. The ball cannoned off the right post and ricocheted into the other side of the goal past the helpless Sandi MacIver.
GOAL! Everton 0-1 Manchester City (Losada 26)
City are in front! Vicky Losada fires City in front from 12 yards out, rifling the ball home off the right post.
Updated
25 min: Alex Greenwood’s delivery is excellent but the ball skims out of play for an Everton touchline at the far touchline off the head of her teammate Bunny Shaw.
24 min: City enjoy a spell of sustained possession and win a corner kick.
22 min: Vicky Losada controls a poor clearance to the edge of the Everton penalty area, looks up and takes a shot. It’s a good effort but the ball fizzes just over the angle of upright and cross-bar.
19 min: Anna Anvegard pounces on a wayward pass as City play it out from the back. She shoots on sight of goal from about 20 yards out but Taieb gets down to her right to save. The goalkeeper is unable to hold on to the ball but Steph Houghton boots it into the stand before anyone in an Everton shirt can follow up.
16 min: A cross from deep from Everton’s Nathalie Bjorn drops just wide of the upright, giving City goalkeeper Taieb a bit of a fright. While I’m happy to give her the benefit of the doubt I don’t think Bjorn meant to shoot but whatever her intention, she wasn’t too far away.
14 min: City’s Aussie import Hayley Raso gets the better of Gabrielle George, gallops down the inside right and shoots. MacIver palms over the bar for a City corner. Nothing comes of it.
12 min: City defender Esme Morgan is robbed of possession halfway inside her own half and Anna Anvegaard surges forward. From the edge of the areas, she unleashes a shot that is blocked by Alex Greenwood.
10 min: Janine Beckie, an Olympic gold medal winner in Tokyo with Canada, takes the first shot in anger. Cutting inside from the left she sends a rising drive straight into the gloves of Everton goalkeeper Sandi MacIver at the near post.
9 min: Everton are probably having the better of proceedings thus far but it’s nip and tuck. They look just a little sharper than their visitors.
7 min: There’s a bit of a mix-up in communication between Houghton and her goalkeeper Karima Taieb at the back for Manchester City, with each leaving a bouncing ball for the other. There’s no one on hand in an Everton shirt to riff on their crossed wires pain.
6 min: Toni Duggan slips a weighted pass down the right flank for Anna Anvegaard to chase. City clear.
6 min: Everton attack down the left flank with Danielle Turner on the ball. City win it back and clear. No chances of note to report so far.
4 min: Khadija “Bunny” Shaw wins the first corner of the game for City. Nothing comes of it. She’s known to all as Bunny for her childhood love of carrots, it says here. And Bunny is the name on the back of her shirt. Every day’s a school day for this WSL reporting novice.
2 min: An early shot for Everton’s Kenza Dali, who fails to get hold of it and scuffs the ball wide of the far upright. Manchester City gave away possession very cheaply there, allowing Everton to break up the field.
2 min: Steph Houghton lumps the ball forward for Man City, who win a free-kick for a shirt-pull on Demi Stokes.
Everton v Manchester City is go ...
1 min: With a little over 5,000 people in attendance, Khadija Shaw gets the ball rolling for Man City following a quick pre-match knee by the players of both teams. City play in light blue shirts, shorts and socks. The players of Everton line-up in royal blue shirts, white shorts and white socks.
Not long now: With the sirens heralding the start of Z Cars blaring out over the Tannoy, Steph Houghton leads Manchester City out on to the Goodison Park sward. Presumably for reasons related to Covid, they arrive from the car-park and line up along with their hostesses and the match officials. Kick-off is just a few moments away.
Everton v Manchester - full line-ups
Everton: MacIver, Finnigan, Sevecke, Bjorn, Gabrielle George, Turner, Izzy Christiansen, Galli, Dali, Anvegard, Duggan.
Subs: Emslie, Gauvin, Sorensen, Graham, Brosnan, Clinton, Bennison, Pattinson.
Man City: Benameur, Morgan, Houghton, Greenwood, Stokes, Coombs, Losada, Weir, Raso, Shaw, Beckie.
Subs: Scott, Stanway, Hemp, White, Mace, Kennedy, Keating.
Everton v Manchester City line-ups
Everton: MacIver, Turner, Sevecke, Bjorn, George, Dali, Christiansen, Finnegan, Galli, Anvegard, Duggan.
Manchester City: Taieb, Morgan, Houghton, Greenwood, Stokes, Coombs, Losada, Weir, Raso, Beckie, Shaw.
Updated
📋 YOUR CITY LINE UP!
— Man City Women (@ManCityWomen) September 4, 2021
XI | Taieb, Morgan, Houghton (C), Greenwood, Stokes, Coombs, Losada, Weir, Raso, Beckie, Shaw.
SUBS | Keating, Kennedy, Hemp, White, Mace, Scott, Stanway.
🔷 #ManCity | https://t.co/HkTzfLdpj9 pic.twitter.com/YIPVgz4wJT
📝 | Our first starting XI of the season...#COYB 🔵 #EFC pic.twitter.com/pw1tlNOp2s
— Everton Women (@EvertonWomen) September 4, 2021
Everton’s summer activity
Everton have made nine new signings including the former England winger Toni Duggan, Italy’s Aurora Galli, France’s Kenza Dali and Sweden’s Anna Anvegård, Nathalie Björn and Hanna Bennison but lost Hayley Raso to Manchester City. Not my words but the etc, and so on of Louise Taylor and Sarah Rendell.
Manchester City’s summer activity
With Sam Mewis and Rose Lavelle returning to the United States this summer, City coach Gareth Taylor lost two World Cup-winning midfielders, but compensation has arrived in the shape of Spain’s Vicky Losada, who is fresh from captaining Barcelona to Champions League glory.
Jamaica forward Khadija Shaw has come in from Bordeaux, while the Australian Hayley Raso has signed from today’s opponents. Winger Chloe Kelly is sidelined after suffering a cruciate injury in May, while right-back Lucy Bronze misses the start of the season after undergoing knee surgury. Not my words, but the words of Louise Taylor and Sarah Rendell, who wrote this excellent and far more thorough season preview.
Match report: Manchester United 2-0 Reading
The WSL got under way last night with a curtain-raiser between Manchester United and Reading. Suzanne Wrack was at Leigh Sports Village to see Kirsty Hanson and Ona Batlle score the goals that won it for the Reds. Read on …
WSL: Everton v Manchester City
Goodison Park is the venue as Everton and Manchester City get their WSL campaigns up and running following yesterday’s season opener – a 2-0 win for Manchester United over Reading.
Both teams have had major summer overhauls, with plenty of activity in their respective arrivals and departures lounges and the managers and players of both clubs have made their ambitions clear.
After five consecutive second place finishes, City are intent on winning the title for the first time since 2016. For Everton, anything less than a second place finish and the Champions League qualification that comes with it will be considered unsatisfactory. Kick-off on Merseyside is at 1.30pm but stay tuned in the meantime for team news and build-up.
