Manchester United dominated West Ham on Sunday. Geyse, Millie Turner and Nikita Parris put the game to bed in the opening half but Lucia Garcia and Melvine Malard added to the tally in two poised second-half efforts, resulting in a 5-0 victory for the hosts at Leigh Sports Village.
Geyse broke the stalemate within the third minute of open play, she capitalised on a looping ball from Hinata Miyazawa. The Brazilian star nodded the ball out of ‘keeper Mackenzie Arnold’s grasp to mark her first top-tier goal of the Women’s Super League campaign.
She put on a fantastic show and West Ham couldn't contain her. The Brazilian star danced through three players, shrugged off man-markers, knocked the ball between the legs of her opposite number and even remained in possession of the ball despite going to ground swarmed with white shirts - an incredible performance.
Turner then doubled United’s lead following an emphatic run down the left flank - she received the ball in the box, took a touch with the outside of her boot and hit into the top corner. Nikita Parris made it three with a neat strike across goal just before the break. Substitute Garcia produced a composed finish from close range in the 88th minute, and Malard found the back of the net shortly after.
Earlier, Leah Galton was unlucky not to get on the scoresheet with a close offside call after she hit Arnold’s top left corner in the 18th minute. Ella Toone’s efforts just missed the target and Katie Zelem’s strike skimmed the woodwork.
The Reds outclassed West Ham and toyed with their opposition pulling the Hammers apart all over the field. United exploited the flailing visitors, hitting Arnold’s goal from every angle. However, it wasn’t all one-way traffic, Mary Earps was called upon around the hour mark and had a busier second half courtesy of Riko Ueki and Lisa Evans’ tenacity on the right flank.
The second half saw Marc Skinner's side play with much less gusto even with the triple attacking changes. It impeded the flow more than bringing United’s scoring prowess to a new level.
Malard posed an threat but kept finding herself offside, until the final minute of open play where she tapped the ball over West Ham's goal line. Lisa Naalsund’s introduction pushed Katie Zelem into a deeper role impacting the flow of forward through balls and while Rachel Williams loomed on the last defender, it was to no avail for her.
