MANCHESTER CITY WOMEN 4, LEICESTER CITY WOMEN 0
Tessa Wullaert and Janine Beckie scored their first goals for Manchester City Women as they beat second tier Leicester City Women in the Continental Tyres League Cup.
Wullaert got on the scoresheet a second time while Nadia Nadim finished off the tiring Foxes at the end of a difficult encounter.
It was the very least the City deserved but as the visitors’ goal lived a charmed life as Nick Cushing’s side lay siege with many chances going to waste from the start.
Jen Beattie headed a Caroline Weir corner wide while Demi Lambourne had an early save to make off Jess Park while Mel Lawley and Claire Emsley probed the Women’s Championship newcomers down the flanks.
Park contrived to blaze wide with the goal at her mercy after Mel Lawley’s cross broke to her from Nadia Nadim after just eight minutes. Beattie had another header from Emslie’s corner saved as City kept the pressure up.
Tessa Wulleart headed over the bar after being teed up by Lawley after 28 minutes.
Beattie flicked the ball onto the bar after an Emslie corner was knocked down by Nadim. Nadim sent a header wide soon afterwards as City tried but just could not convert their chances.
The Foxes had rare chances in the first half, with Freda Ayisi testing Karen Bardsley from close range while Wullaert tackled Ayisi as she shaped to go through on goal.
Nadim missed another header from a Weir free kick at the start of the second period.
Wulleart slid in and blazed a Lawley cross over as the chances continued to go to waste.
She didn’t have to wait much longer for her first City goal – after 53 minutes Leicester failed to clear another deep City attack and Wullaert slid in again and buried the loose ball past Lambourne.
Melissa Johnson briefly gave Bardsley cause for concern in the City goal but City reorganised with Canadian forward Janine Beckie replacing Beattie and Weir dropping into the back four.
Ayisi’s cross was blazed over by Leigh Dugmore as Leicester reorganised after their own change with Melissa Johnson replaced by Sophie Domingo.
Beckie drove wide after a cut back by Emslie but City were struggling with a second Leicester change with Rosie Axten coming on for Taome Oliver.
Janine Beckie scored on her debut for Manchester City Women
Beckie scored on her debut when Emslie’s cross was flicked on by Nadim in the 72nd minute and the Canadian slotted in little over 10 minutes into her debut.
Wulleart’s 74th minute shot went wide as City looked to finish off their tiring visitors and Beckie almost found Park with a cut back.
It was game over in the 80th minute though when Nadim’s driven pass into the area was tapped in by Wulleart past Lambourne.
And having set up two goals, Nadim got on the scoresheet herself with six minutes to go with a low shot through a crowd which went past the luckless Lambourne.
Wullaert’s late pass to Beckie was volleyed wide by the Canadian and Nadim tried an overhead kick as City went in search of a fifth with the Foxes well beaten.
MATCH STATS – Manchester City Women 4, Leicester City Women 0
Man City Women: Bardsley, Jans, Bonner, Beattie (Beckie 61), McManus, Weir, Wullaert, Park, Emslie, Lawley, Nadim
Man City Women Subs not used: Stenson, Houghton, Scott, Walsh, Parris, Bradley
Booked: Lawley 66
Goals: Wulleart 53, Wullaert 80; Beckie 72, Nadim 84
Leicester City Women: Lambourne, Morgan, Greengrass, Oliver (Axten 70), Melissa Johnson (Domingo 66), Ayisi, (Worts 74), James, Dugmore, McCue, Fletcher, Cusack
Leicester City Women Subs not used: Nymeon, Clarke, Nat Johnson, Moncaster
Attendance: 1,609