The Cityzens are a long-shot to finish in the top three now, but there is still success on the cards in three major cup competitions
Manchester City's Women's Super League season has been hanging by a thread for a while now and, on Wednesday, it felt like that thread finally snapped. As Manuela Pavi muscled her way into the box and curled a stoppage time equaliser past Ayaka Yamashita to secure a dramatic equaliser for relegation-threatened West Ham, the blow it dealt to City's chances of securing a top-three finish was best summed up by the exasperated and frustrated reactions of their players. This was a tough one.
With six games to play, City are just one point behind third-placed Arsenal, but they've played a game more than the Gunners and a game more than Manchester United, who are four points ahead of them in second. Arsenal play just one more of the 'big four' before the end of the season, while City still need to face both Chelsea and United.
But, really, it's not the games against their toughest rivals that are the problem. City's biggest issue right now is that they do not have the squad to battle in the WSL, the Champions League, the League Cup and the FA Cup. With success in the former looking more and more unlikely, Gareth Taylor's side need to focus on the cup competitions if they want to have a successful end to a campaign that, at this point, they'll be glad to see the back of.
Getty Images SportNot fit for four fronts
City never came into this season with the biggest squad. With just one fit senior right-back and one fit senior left-back, they were never going to be able to battle across all four fronts to the degree which a team like Chelsea can, with the strongest squad in the division.
However, the WSL was the priority for Taylor, given the disappointment of falling at the final hurdle in last season's quest to deliver a first league title for the women's side since 2016. It felt like that extra motivation, combined with star summer signings like Vivianne Miedema, could help drive them to success this time around.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesMisfortune aplenty
Sadly for them, though, it is the league form which has been hit hardest when injuries have made that small squad even smaller. While there are certainly questions that can be asked of City's squad-building this year, it has to be said that they have had some bad luck, too.
At the Olympics, Risa Shimizu suffered a brutal ACL injury with Japan just two weeks after signing for the club, then Miedema, Lauren Hemp and Alex Greenwood all underwent knee surgeries in successive months. Laia Aleixandri, Khadija Shaw, Laura Blindkilde Brown and Aoba Fujino have all spent time on the sidelines as well, with the absences of the latter two certainly felt in Wednesday's draw at West Ham.
When City brought in defensive reinforcements in January, the misfortune still didn't stop. Rebecca Knaak had performed brilliantly in Greenwood's place, after arriving from Swedish side Rosengard, so much so that she won a first senior call-up for Germany in February. Then, on international duty, she suffered a hamstring injury that has ruled her out for several weeks.
Getty ImagesDefensive woes
Knaak's absence was another that was telling on Wednesday. Gracie Prior, the young academy product who has shown promise when given chances this season, played at centre-back instead. That is her natural position but it was her first time starting there in a senior match, having played as a right-back otherwise this term. That she was out-muscled with ease by Pavi for West Ham's equaliser will be a learning moment for her.
It's a position that has become a real issue for City this season, so much so that Miedema revealed to Dutch reporters last month that she was asked if she had ever played at centre-back before. "It was because we don't have that many defensive options at the club," she said. "The question was whether – with my height – I could step back when defending a lead. That suggestion did go a bit too far for me. Fortunately, we haven't been in that situation yet. I hope it won't happen either."
While clearly just an enquiry rather than an attempt to find a regular solution, the quotes highlighted the situation that City find themselves in defence after losing Greenwood and Knaak to injury, while letting Alanna Kennedy leave for Angel City in the January window.
GettyA tricky balancing act
That said, Taylor did have a more senior option than Prior for Wednesday's game in Naomi Layzell, the 21-year-old into her fifth season already after debuting for Bristol City at 16. However, she was one of several possible starters he left on the bench alongside Miedema, Shaw and Spain international left-back Leila Ouahabi, with others given a chance in a rotated XI.
It was clear he had one eye on Sunday's FA Cup quarter-final against Aston Villa and, just generally, the month ahead. The trip to West Ham was City's second match of eight in March, with four games against Chelsea – in the League Cup final, the Champions League quarter-finals and the WSL – among those remaining. It's a huge month that is likely to define their season.
Taylor has to find the right moments to rest key players and he can be forgiven for thinking that this match was an opportunity to do exactly that. Unfortunately, though, it wasn't until Shaw and Miedema came off the bench and combined to score that City were able to find a breakthrough in London, and then came the late equaliser. With Chelsea playing at the same time and using their squad to greater success in a tough 3-1 win over Leicester, it just further underlined what was already known – City do not have the ability to compete on four fronts, unlike Chelsea.
