Leila Ouahabi, Laura Blindkilde Brown and Jess Park were also on the scoresheet on a day where injury to the Jamaica star was the only real negative
Khadija Shaw shone as Manchester City secured a comfortable 5-0 win over West Ham to return to the top of the Women's Super League table on Sunday, though the Cityzens will be sweating over her fitness after the striker was withdrawn at half-time. Shaw pulled up towards the end of the first half and needed assistance leaving the field, that the real disappointment of an otherwise brilliant day.
There were just 24 seconds on the clock when Leila Ouahabi broke the deadlock, and that set the tone for a dominant first half, with two great finishes from Shaw putting City in a commanding position. However, West Ham grew into the game, especially as their hosts dropped their level in the second period. Khiara Keating made a superb stop to deny Viviane Asseyi and the Frenchwoman was one of three Hammers to also be denied by the woodwork, while Riko Ueki will feel she should've done better with an opportunity one-on-one.
Just as the game looked to be petering out, there was time for the home fans to get excited again when Laura Blindkilde Brown, picked up for a bumper fee in January, scored her first goal for the club in the latter stages of the second half. That appeared to spark City back into life, and Jess Park added some further gloss in the final moments with a wonderful finish.
It gave the league leaders a real boost to their goal difference, something which this title race with Chelsea could well come down to over the next few weeks, though any prolonged absence for Shaw could well dent that challenge.
GOAL rates Man City's players from the Joie Stadium…
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Khiara Keating (7/10):
Made an especially brilliant save to deny Asseyi in the first half.
Laia Aleixandri (7/10):
Another classy and near-faultless display.
Alanna Kennedy (7/10):
Good on the ball and relatively solid in her defensive work.
Alex Greenwood (7/10):
Made an outstanding challenge to thwart Ueki at the end of the first half.
Leila Ouahabi (7/10):
Superb strike to break the deadlock.
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Yui Hasegawa (7/10):
Dictated play well and was her usually disruptive self when City didn't have the ball.
Laura Coombs (6/10):
Could've had a goal before half-time but struck the ball right at Arnold. That was the highlight of a quiet hour or so on the pitch.
Jess Park (8/10):
Lively performance which started with a silky assist on 24 seconds. Really deserved her goal and took it well.
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Mary Fowler (8/10):
Not as overtly effective as Hemp on the opposite flank but played some nice passes to build attacks, especially when she darted inside.
Khadija Shaw (8/10):
A real handful for West Ham's centre-halves in the first half, as shown by her two goals. Will be a huge miss if her injury is serious.
Lauren Hemp (8/10):
Whether on the right or on the left, the Hammers didn't have an answer for her direct and positive wing play in a devastating first half.
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Chloe Kelly (5/10):
Replaced Shaw at half-time but struggled for service or to get involved as City's performance fell flat.
Laura Blindkilde Brown (6/10):
On just past the hour and initially had a similar problem to Kelly, but she took the one opportunity that fell to her to net her first City goal and spark the team back into life.
Gareth Taylor (8/10):
A starting XI with few surprises dominated the first half and gave his team a huge lead. His decision to introduce Blindkilde helped spark the team back into life when they were in a lull, too. Difficult to grumble at a 5-0 win, though Shaw's injury is a concern.
