Yahoo Sports WSL: Bunny Shaw claws back win for Manchester City vs Liverpool
A brace from Jamaican striker Bunny Shaw was enough to secure all three points for Manchester City against Liverpool. The Sky Blues were trailing due to a goal from Olivia Smith before a brace from their star striker kept their unbeaten league record intact. With the fixture hosted in Anfield, the 2-1 win marks the first time the two teams have met in the famous stadium.
Starting XI’s
Manchester City
Yamashita; Aleixandri, Greenwood, Fowler, Roord, Hemp, Ouahabi, Park, Casparij, Shaw, Hasegawa
Liverpool
Laws; Parry, Matthews, Kapocs, Nagano, Haug, Smith, Hinds, Hobinger, Clark, Bonner
How it went
Liverpool dominated the early exchanges with Manchester City’s heavy schedule beginning to make an impact. Tired runs and sloppy passing quickly offered the hosts a route into the tie. Whilst Manchester City dominated the possession, it was Liverpool who opened the scoring shortly before the break. Olivia Smith found the back of the net after Manchester City failed to deal with a Liverpool attack. Taking the ball from Sophie Roman Haug, the No.11 slotted the ball neatly beyond Ayaka Yamashita to bag Liverpool’s first Anfield goal.
The second half brought a Manchester City side clearly determined to keep their domestic season on track. An equaliser from Bunny Shaw came in the 58th minute as the forward nodded home Lauren Hemp’s perfectly weighted ball. A nervy 30 minutes followed with neither side able to get the better of their opposition.
The hour mark saw a change in the game as Manchester City began to up the intensity of their attacks. Numerous good chances went begging for the visitors. As the clock ticked beyond the 90-minute mark, Shaw was once again the hero for her side. Firing the ball into the top of Rachel Laws’ net, the Jamaican secured all three points for her side as they continued their pursuit of the WSL title.
Whilst the game lacked the style of Manchester City’s midweek victory over Barcelona, Gareth Taylor’s side were able to find the composure to finish a difficult domestic clash. Whilst the Sky Blues were far from their best, a huge amount of credit must go to Matt Beards’ side. Their dogged determination and sustained attacking play caused last season’s WSL runners-up a huge headache.
