Lauren Hemp was the star of the show as Manchester City triumphed against Arsenal in a Barclays Women’s Super League fixture at The Academy Stadium yesterday.
Manchester City’s number 11 opened the scoring in the fourth minute and proved to be a constant threat to Jonas Eidevall’s side. Chloe Kelly was also on target for The Cityzens as they recorded a 2-1 win.
When speaking to the media after the match, Hemp said that the victory was a real confidence-booster for the team.
“We didn’t get the result we wanted on Wednesday (in the Conti Cup),” said Hemp. “I think people saw the fight and determination from everyone today and we all put a shift in and managed to get the result.
“It definitely gives us more confidence going forward, although there’s still a long way to go and there are so many more games. We need to make sure we win every single one to keep us in contention for the league.”
Saturday’s victory means that Manchester City now sit in third position, just three points behind Barclays Women’s Super League leaders Manchester United. The Cityzens have a three-point cushion on fourth-placed Arsenal, who do have a game-in-hand.
“The result has put us in a really good position,” Hemp said. “We want to show teams that we’re not here for a laugh; we’re here because we want to win. Everyone’s now going to go away on international break and do their bit, but it’s going to be important for us that when we get back, we hit the ground running again.”
The Hemp, Kelly and Khadija Shaw front-three is a major threat for any Barclays Women’s Super League side. Hemp and Kelly provide the pace out wide while Shaw brings incredible hold-up play and aerial ability. Hemp briefly went on to discuss the attacking talent in the Manchester City squad.
She said “They’re both fantastic players (Kelly and Shaw). The amount of depth we’ve got in the forward line is fantastic, (Hayley) Raso, Mary (Fowler) and Julie (Blakstad) too. There are so many unbelievable players that could play week in, week out and it’s important that we do our bit when we get given the opportunity.
“I’ve never seen anything like Shaw’s hold up play before in the game. Chloe also had a fantastic game, obviously putting the ball on a plate for me and she got a goal herself, but everyone put in a massive shift and it’s important that we kick on.
“I thought we were really aggressive and we carried that throughout the game, not just in the first half like we did on Wednesday. We wanted it more than them, we fought more and sometimes it comes down to that.”
Manchester City are next in action on Sunday 26 February 2023 when they travel to Bristol City for a Vitality Women’s FA Cup fifth round tie.
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