Man City defeat by Arsenal ‘throws WSL title race up in the air’

With only a minute of normal time left to go, Manchester City looked like they had one hand on the Women’s Super League trophy.

Gareth Taylor’s side, who were hoping to give retiring captain Steph Houghton the perfect send-off at Joie Stadium, knew victory would give them a chance of winning the WSL title on Sunday evening if Chelsea dropped points against Bristol City.

Then everything changed.

Stina Blackstenius’ dramatic late double gave Arsenal a 2-1 win, spoiling City’s party, hours before Chelsea ran riot to beat Bristol City 8-0.

Now, City may have to wait until the final day of the season to go head-to-head with Emma Hayes’ side in a blockbuster finish.

“I couldn’t tell you [who will win the title]. It’s definitely not over,” former England midfielder Fara Williams told BBC One.

“Chelsea have a game in hand to play. The pressure is on. It’s wide open for the last game of the season and it’s super exciting.”

As it stands, City have a three-point lead at the top, but Chelsea’s huge win at Kingsmeadow means they now have a superior goal difference by one and ex-England striker Ellen White thinks the title race has been “thrown up in the air”.

“This is what we wanted – the most competitive league and the most competitive end to the season as well,” said White on BBC One.

Chelsea’s game in hand is away at Tottenham on Wednesday, 15 May – which kicks off at 19:15 BST and will be live on BBC Two. They then travel to Manchester United on Sunday, 18 May.

Manchester City are away at Aston Villa with both games kicking off at 15:00 BST.