Lauren James scored a hat-trick as Chelsea were 3-1 winners in WSL; Man Utd manager Marc Skinner was forced to defend his job as manager with ‘Skinner out’ signs seen among away fans at full-time; Chelsea are three points clear at top of the WSL, 10 ahead of Man Utd in fourth
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Anton Toloui and Charlotte Marsh discuss Chelsea’s 3-1 victory over Manchester United as Lauren James scored a sensational hat-trick for the league leaders
Emma Hayes says she has never seen a player capable of doing the things Lauren James can after her hat-trick saw Chelsea to a 3-1 win against Manchester United in the WSL.
James – who the Blues signed from Man Utd in the summer of 2021 – scored a treble at Stamford Bridge as Chelsea restored their three-point lead at the top of the WSL.
She has now scored nine goals in her last five games in what was one of many standout performances for Hayes’ side, raising hopes the absence of Sam Kerr will not slow down the Chelsea goal machine.
- Chelsea 3-1 Man Utd – Match report
- How the teams lined up | Match stats | Live WSL table
- Watch free WSL highlight from every game this season
Unsurprisingly, the 22-year-old came in for high praise from her manager, who said: “I’ve never seen a player like Lauren do the things she does individually.
“If you get tight to her, she’ll roll you. If you drop off of her, next time she makes a move, you think you’ve got her.
“She’s so explosive. She’s got a left and a right foot. Often players have got strong sides, but I think she can do it on both feet.
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Highlights from the Women’s Super League match between Chelsea and Manchester United
“I was impressed with her whole performance… I thought she carried out the game plan and her role in that to perfection. It changed in the second half with Mia (Fishel) coming out and I think she did that equally as well. She’s shown her qualities as a No 9 or No 10 and her finishing was second to none – the quality of that is a natural finisher.”
Hayes added to BBC Sport of her forward: “Human beings are not simple. There are a lot of complexities involved with Lauren, but she is a genius footballer. I am happy for her.
“She wanted to demonstrate to the home fans that she could step forward, that she can do it as a 10, and a nine in the second half. Her hold up play is unbelievable.
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“Everyone has to take turns in that [replacing Kerr’s goals]. Lauren has done that today, Mia (Fishel) came on last week. There are a lot of young players out there that have to shoulder a lot of responsibility as the champions and they handled it superbly.”
But Hayes was also keen to stress the how pleased she was with the overall team performance, hailing it as Chelsea’s best of the season.
She explained: “I think one of the things we’ve been talking about in the background, led by and driven by the players, is what is the Chelsea standard? What does that look like in and out of possession? And I think we showed that today.
Image: James celebrates after opening the scoring for Chelsea against Manchester United
“So my initial feeling is when you’re in a team around you work on something collectively, as we all know, sometimes it doesn’t come out the way you want.
“I thought today was our best performance of the season. It looked like the standards we’ve set, but also it was brave and that included the selection. I’m proud of them.”
I’ll cry my eyes out – Hayes braced for emotional Chelsea farewell
Image: Emma Hayes will end 12 years in charge of the side at the end of the Women's Super League season
Hayes expects to “cry her eyes out” during the final weeks of her hugely successful spell as manager of Chelsea Women.
Hayes, 47, will end 12 years in charge of the side at the end of the Women’s Super League season to take over as head coach of the United States.
Asked if she expected to have mixed emotions come the time to say goodbye, Hayes said: “I don’t think they’ll be mixed, I’ll be absolutely distraught. I’m a bit of a sobber. I think I’ll cry my eyes out for the last few weeks…
“I think I’m now at a point where I’m looking forward to being in the crowd, coming back and hopefully watching Chelsea in many finals. I’ve done my bit and I certainly hope they welcome me back as a fan because that’s how I see myself.”
Image: Hayes is the first woman to win the Football Writers Tribute Award
Having masterminded a period of complete dominance for Chelsea, who have won six Super League titles, five FA Cups and two League Cups since 2015 and top the table again after Sunday’s 3-1 win over Manchester United, Hayes will soon take on a very different challenge in international football.
“I think the whole thing is a huge challenge,” Hayes said. “It’s a lot less hands-on with the players but it means I need to develop another side of myself. I have to work with the team off the pitch in a much different way to prepare for major tournaments.
“I’m so excited to go to an Olympics and a World Cup. It’s what dreams are made of.”
Hayes was speaking after becoming the 42nd recipient of the Football Writers Tribute Award, and the first woman to receive the honour.
“It’s worrying to be quite honest,” Hayes said of being the first female recipient. “But we’re here, we can’t go backwards and I’m looking forward to seeing a number of females representing the game in the room.
“I’ve never taken my position lightly or for granted. I’ve always loved the job I’ve done and to be here is a special day for my family.”
Image: Lauren James scored inside five minutes on her way to a hat-trick
Although Hayes has piled up honours, as she reflected on her career so far she said the greatest achievement was in helping to grow the women’s game, which has developed massively during her time in the sport.
“I was playing a Lego game with my son the other day and he thought I was the female manager on the sideline,” she said. “He just automatically assumes women manage teams, whether they are men’s or women’s teams. The pinch-me moments are more about that than anything else.
“When I was growing up and aspiring to play an FA Cup final at Wembley for Tottenham and being Glenn Hoddle, scores of young girls and boys are thinking now about how amazing Millie Bright is or Sam Kerr is. I think those are the moments I pinch myself about more than I do the achievements.
“All I really wanted as a child was role models. To think they have them is my favourite achievement.”
Skinner: I am absolutely secure in my job
Image: Marc Skinner says he feels 'absolutely secure' in his job as Man Utd manager
With their defeat at Stamford Bridge, Manchester United are now 10 points behind leaders Chelsea, having finished just two behind the Blues last term.
Some fans in the away end held up ‘Skinner out’ signs at full-time, with the same also seen during winter break friendlies as they voiced their frustration with the team’s performances this season.
When asked how secure he feels in his job after a third WSL defeat of the campaign, Skinner told Sky Sports News: “If you look at how you perform with the resources we have, I am absolutely secure in what I do and how I do it.
“And I thoroughly, with every sinew in my body, believe in my team, believe in what we can do and believe where we will be.
“Nothing is ever perfect in life and we are inclusive of everybody. My sole focus is on my team and how we get better and continue to be better.”
Image: Hayley Ladd scored the reply for Man Utd at the end of the first half
Reflecting on the performance – including a penalty that was not given after Leah Galton went down under pressure from Ashley Lawrence – Skinner added: “In the first part of the first half, we were too eager to press Chelsea and allowed them too many spaces.
“That’s what Chelsea want – no disrespect – they’re a concise team that play through you consistently so we were just chasing them and we needed to get them in.
“We fixed that halfway through the second half and then I felt we were the better team going into the break.
“In the second half, we came out with that same energy, that same commitment. We also agreed at half time that we need to tackle more. The game is fundamentally about the physicality that you have.
“Key things went against us too, I still believe it was a penalty… we need to take the chances in the big games and then it’s different.
“We can’t sit here and lick our wounds. We know the gap is 10 points, everyone’s reminded me, then we’ve got to play with the energy and commitment that we’re ten points behind.
“We’ve got to see how far we can chase now. You’re playing against Chelsea with the depth in squad that they have is enviable for everybody in the league. We need to continue to grow to that level, invest to that level – I know the club are wanting to do that.
“We still have to take moments in games when they come and rely on a little bit of decisions to go for you too.
Sourse: skysports.com
