WSL talking points: Chelsea edge Arsenal at Stamford Bridge and Putellas shines for London City

Chelsea beat Arsenal 1-0 at Stamford Bridge in the Women's Super League on 28 September 2026, while Alexia Putellas scored and influenced London City Lionesses' 2-0 win over Brighton.

Arsenal applied plenty of pressure but lacked cutting edge at Stamford Bridge, registering only two of their 18 shots on target and failing to trouble Chelsea goalkeeper Hannah Hampton with any of their nine first-half attempts; Chelsea had five of eight shots on target and scored just before half-time through Alyssa Thompson.

Renée Slegers reflected on Arsenal’s finishing while also attempting to shield her players, saying: “I wanted to keep it away from the players because they can score goals and they can finish and they will get the rewards for their work.”

Alexia Putellas celebrated as her shot flew past Brighton goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie and turned to the crowd; the former Barcelona player, who arrived at London City Lionesses in the summer and took time to settle, created the most chances in the match and her goal gave Eder Maestre’s side something to build on in a 2-0 victory that continued to show their progress.

Liverpool’s summer signing Natalia Ramos, recruited from Tenerife, impressed in a 2-0 win over Everton with creative play and set-piece deliveries, including an assist for the opener, and earned praise from the head coach Gareth Tayor: “She brings such personality. I can imagine people enjoy watching Natalia play because she’s very humble and very open to learning, even at 27 years old, but she’s been like a ray of sunshine coming into this group because she’s very caring, very honest and very open – she’s just a brilliant teammate.”

Victoria Pelova scored twice in Tottenham’s 4-0 victory over Aston Villa, adding to two goals against Crystal Palace the previous week; Spurs had 15 shots in the first half without scoring before finding their cutting edge, and the head coach Martin Ho said: “She sets the tone for the team,” praising Pelova’s “attitude and mentality” under pressure.

Manchester United followed a 10-1 midweek win over Sheffield United in the new Subway Players Cup — their first victory since March — by beating West Ham 2-1 on Sunday, a confidence boost head coach Eva Olid described as timely; West Ham have lost seven times in a row in the league at United, and for Olid it was a first league win in England. Charlton suffered a fourth straight WSL defeat, losing 1-0 to Manchester City despite only 25% possession and earning praise from their head coach Karen Hills: “I’m so proud of them,” she said. “I thought the players bought into what I was asking them to do, and I thought they delivered it and executed it to the best that they can.”

Océane Hurtré scored a first-minute curled opener with the outside of her left boot and added a second from a tight angle about half an hour later as Birmingham drew 3-3 with Crystal Palace; the 22-year-old's double moved her to four goals, level with Pelova and Manchester City's Khadija Shaw, and Birmingham twice let their lead slip before coming back to score a late equaliser. Hurtré said: “It’s not easy but we want to win. Crystal Palace scored for 3-2 and we came back so it’s a positive.”

With their season unravelling, however, solutions need to be found quickly for Arsenal as they regroup after the Stamford Bridge defeat.