Arsenal have continued their prolific start to the new Barclays FA Women’s Super League season by defeating Brighton & Hove Albion 5-0 at The People’s Pension Stadium this afternoon.
The Gunners head coach Joe Montemurro made two changes to his side while the hosts made six as both teams looked to bounce back from disappointing midweek results in the FA Women’s Continental League Cup.
Brighton & Hove Albion started the game brightly and Denise O’Sullivan’s shot went just wide after four minutes.
It didn’t take Arsenal long to make an impact as Vivianne Miedema’s shot from the edge of the area beat Megan Walsh in the Brighton & Hove Albion goal after 10 minutes.
Arsenal had the better of the possession as the half progressed but the home side will be disappointed that neither Aileen Whelan nor O’Sullivan were able to put away their chances. Instead it was Arsenal who built on their lead through Danielle van de Donk following a pull back from Miedema.
It was Arsenal who started brightly in the second half and unlike Albion, they took their early chance with Jen Beattie turning in a corner to make it 0-3.
The second half saw lots of changes to combat the tired legs and the hosts will be disappointed with their control of the second ball in the middle of the park, allowing Arsenal to win back possession too easily. After 82 minutes, Arsenal scored their fourth as Lotte Wubben Moy thumped home a cross from Miedema before the Dutch international got her second in stoppage time after Katie McCabe had cut the ball back from the byline.
It was another comfortable win for Arsenal who will now face Tottenham Hotspur next weekend. Brighton & Hove Albion manager Hope Powell was frustrated that her players couldn’t put their chances away but was encouraged by the number of chances that they made against a top side. Albion travel to Everton next weekend in what will be another tricky encounter.