Photo via Sky Sports

Hemp double ensures Man City maintain winning start to WSL title defence

Lauren Hemp notched a pair of goals as Manchester City overcame Liverpool in a thrilling 4-2 contest, keeping their title defense unblemished. Hemp opened the scoring by finishing a slick team sequence for her first strike since November, but the visitors struck back twice to seize a 2-1 lead by the 29th minute.

After an error in City's backline allowed Alice Bergstrom to convert, provider Vivien Endemann doubled Liverpool's tally with a volley that beat Ayaka Yamashita. City drew level before the interval when Khadija Shaw pounced on a spill by goalkeeper Khiara Keating following a Hemp effort, marking Shaw's fourth league strike of the campaign.

The deadlock held until the 90th minute, when visiting captain Grace Fisk turned the ball into her own net to put the reigning champions ahead. With Liverpool pushing upfield in stoppage time, Hemp capitalized on the counterattack to break away and beat Keating in the 95th minute.

The dramatic result extended City's home winning streak at the Joie Stadium to 14 matches, matching Chelsea's league record set between September 2019 and January 2021. They can claim the standalone record with a victory over on October 4.