• City’s lack of incisiveness cost them in a tight, exciting match.
• City handing them their first loss since September.
• Arsenal will play either West Ham United or Chelsea on March 5.

Arsenal defeated defending champion Manchester City 1-0 in overtime on the strength of Stina Blackstenius’ game-winning goal to advance to the Continental League Cup final.

With a deflected finish in the 93rd minute, Blackstenius capitalised on fellow substitute Lina Hurtig’s pass to decide the semi-final and take her team closer to winning their first trophy since winning the 2018–19 Women’s Super League.

City’s lack of incisiveness cost them in a tight, exciting match between two hot WSL clubs, ending their 16-game winning streak and handing them their first loss since September.

winners five times in a row. After Thursday’s semi-finals, Arsenal will play either West Ham United or Chelsea in the championship match.

The highlight will be at Selhurst Park in Crystal Palace on March 5.

The players of Manchester City had expressed their enthusiasm at the idea of playing the third-placed Arsenal twice this week after drawing even with them last weekend in terms of points.

It was expected that this match would serve as an illuminating practise for a potentially crucial WSL match, so it came as no surprise to see a tactical battle between a City team that had gone this long without losing and an Arsenal team that had kept three straight clean sheets across all competitions.

One of the amusing one-on-one scraps saw Chloe Kelly’s unyielding back-and-forth with Katie McCabe, while Lauren Hemp resisted Bunny Shaw’s supply attempts with inventive resentment.

In a game that depended on quick transitions, Arsenal had fewer attempts but better chances. They took advantage of slack passing to go close through Laura Wienroither, who was denied by City goalkeeper Sandy MacIver in the early going, and Caitlin Foord, who came so close to connecting with an inviting Kim Little cross.

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