Khadija Shaw Brace Fires Man City to Dominant 3-0 Win Over Stubborn Leicester – WSL Match Report

Manchester City Women put on a clinic performance, brushing aside Leicester City Women 3-0 in what felt like a routine outing for the title chasers on this chilly day. Andree Jeglertz’s squad just owned the game from start to finish, hogging 75% of the possession and leaving Leicester scrambling with a measly 25%. It’s the kind of stat line that screams dominance. City unleashed 30 shots to Leicester’s paltry two, nine of those on target, forcing six saves out of Janina Leitzig, who honestly deserved better than the shellacking her team took. Expected goals told the tale, too. Manchester City racked up about 4.5 xG, turning high-quality chances into goals, while Leicester barely scraped together 0.2 xG, their attacks dying before they even got going.

On the tactics side, it was a classic mismatch. Leicester hunkered down in a 5-4-1, all about soaking up pressure and hoping for a counter, against City’s slick 4-2-3-1 that let them control the tempo and carve through with ease. Rick Passmoor set his Foxes up with Leitzig in net, a solid back five featuring Asmita Ale, captain Janice Cayman, Chantelle Swaby, Julie Thibaud, and Sam Tierney. Midfield had Hlín Eiríksdóttir, Courtney Boureille, Olivia McLoughlin, and Hannah Cain trying to plug gaps, with Shannon O’Brien up top as the isolated striker chasing shadows. It was a setup geared toward winning those gritty aerial battles; they split them 50-50 and racked up recoveries 43 in all, but offensively? Forget it. Their passes stayed mostly in safe zones, with final-third accuracy dipping to 34%, and those hopeful long balls connecting just 30% of the time, no real bite going forward.

Manchester City, though, rolled out Yamashita in goal, a backline of Kerstin Casparij, Jade Rose, Rebecca Knaak, and Leila Ouahabi, with Laura Blindkilde Brown and Yui Hasegawa bossing the midfield. Up front, Aoba Fujino, Vivianne Miedema, and Lauren Hemp fed Khadija Shaw, who was a nightmare for defenders, dragging them out and opening lanes. Their heatmap was all over the wide channels, especially that left side where Ouahabi and Hemp linked up to rack up 67 touches in Leicester’s box. Passing-wise, it was poetry 537 accurate ones, short and sharp, letting them recycle and probe until gaps appeared. As the game wore on, they shifted to more direct stuff in the second half, exploiting tired legs.

First Half Overview

That opening half was pure City control, but somehow it stayed 0-0, even with their xG hitting 2.1 against Leicester’s zilch. Right off the bat, Hasegawa was pulling strings from deep, nailing 90% of her passes and keeping things ticking. Their play clustered out wide, Ouahabi overlapping with Hemp to pull Leicester’s defense apart. Just two minutes in, Blindkilde Brown slipped Shaw in on the right, but her left-footed effort curled wide decent chance, about 0.15 xG, setting the tone for what was coming.

Leicester stuck to their guns in that 5-4-1, breaking up play with strong ground duels (60% won) and those 11 interceptions, mostly early on. Cayman was immense at the back, holding her own in the air and shutting down Shaw’s headers. But City’s constant probing started wearing them thin. Fourth minute, Miedema got on the end of Ouahabi’s cross for a header that Leitzig pushed away (0.3 xG) first of many big saves from the keeper. She was at it again in the 17th, denying Knaak from distance after Blindkilde Brown won it back.

Around the 19th, Miedema took a knock that paused things briefly, but Leicester couldn’t turn it into anything. Their attacks were rare and toothless like O’Brien’s 23rd-minute stab from Cain’s cross that went wide (their only box shot, 0.1 xG). No big chances, no pressure on Yamashita. Set pieces didn’t help much either; Leicester’s lone corner in the 22nd got headed clear by Rose, while City’s half-dozen corners built tension, though Hemp’s deliveries in the 25th and 29th didn’t quite click.

Then came the blow at 31 minutes. Eiríksdóttir went down hurt, subbed off for Emily van Egmond at the 35th. That messed with their midfield balance; van Egmond couldn’t match the energy, giving Hasegawa even more room. City’s best look came in the 41st: Miedema’s header off Knaak’s flick forced another Leitzig miracle (0.4 xG), with Casparij’s rebound blocked. As the half dragged into eight added minutes thanks to stops like Ale’s 42nd-minute issue, Shaw nodded one just over from Ouahabi in the 48th (0.25 xG). Frustrating for City, but their passing web, all those midfield connections to the wings, had Leicester on the ropes. The hosts’ heatmap showed nothing up top, just sideways stuff in their own end.

Second Half Overview

After the break, City cranked it up, and Leicester’s resistance crumbled, with three goals in quick succession flipping the script hard. They kept the 4-2-3-1 but pushed Hasegawa higher for more bite. Leicester stayed compact in their shape, but fatigue showed; City’s final-third entries hit 110 total.

Right away, 47th minute, Hemp’s tight-angle shot got blocked (0.2 xG), then Shaw skewed one wide from Casparij in the 49th (0.3 xG). Hasegawa’s 53rd-minute free kick sailed off target, but subs changed everything: Grace Clinton for Blindkilde Brown at 64th added zip in the middle, and Kerolin for Miedema at 69th brought speed and directness that shredded Leicester.

The floodgates opened in the 74th. Kerolin whipped in a cross, Shaw slotted home from close (0.5 xG). Came from Clinton’s high press winning the ball, a real shift after the changes. Leicester threw on Missy Goodwin for O’Brien at 72nd, but she got hurt soon after in the 76th, another delay.

City’s second? 83rd minute, corner time Hemp swung it in, Shaw glanced a header past Leitzig from six yards (0.35 xG), after McLoughlin gave away the set piece. Corners were huge for City, those 13 generating 1.2 xG, their size edge paying off. Shaw was the star, brace plus an assist, always in the mix, drawing fouls left and right. Hemp shone too, two assists, her dribbles (62% success), tearing up the left.

Leicester tried late with Ayane and Las at 85th, but City countered for the third in the 94th, Shaw’s through ball set Kerolin free for a cool finish (0.4 xG), right after Ayane’s 93rd offside. Wrapped up a counterpunch. For Leicester, it was rough; Tierney and Ale couldn’t handle crosses (20% success), McLoughlin’s 24th-minute block was their highlight in a forgettable showing. No big ref dramas, though Knaak’s 87th foul on Leitzig got some murmurs.

All told, City’s xG arc nailed three of nine big chances, wasting seven, showed their class, with Shaw and Hasegawa stealing the show through smart passing and movement. Leicester held for a bit on grit alone, but without any forward push, they’re in for a tough slog in the league. City? They’re looking unstoppable; that mix of patience and punch is gold.

Player Ratings

Player of the Match: Khadija Shaw (Manchester City)