Charlton Athletic Women 0-1 Liverpool Women: Match Report | OneFootball

After a capitulation from the Men’s first team on Saturday in Manchester, it was the turn of the Women to attempt to book a FA Cup semi-final spot as Gareth Taylor’s side made the trip to the capital to take on high-flying WSL 2 Charlton Athletic. 

The Reds named a strong starting lineup with only a handful of changes from their Merseyside Derby win at Goodison Park, as Fuka Nagano, Denise O’Sullivan and Mia Enderby were all included in the XI.  

There was a blow for Taylor’s charges, however, as the influential Ceri Holland missed the trip to the Valley through injury, Aurélie Csillag and Cornelia Kapocs were tasked with picking up the attacking slack from the start as the likes of Beata Olsson, Martha Thomas and the returning Zara Shaw all watched on from the bench.

Former Liverpool Women’s and Denmark striker Amalie Thestrup led the line for the hosts, who currently sit second in the second tier, level on points with Birmingham and seemingly destined for the top flight next season. 

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When the match got underway, Taylor’s side had to withstand an energetic opening from a home side that are used to winning games, and it wasn’t until Enderby’s header was tipped over on the six-minute mark that the Reds truly enjoyed a spell of prolonged possession.

The match remained an end-to-end encounter as both sides got the ball into wide areas quickly and with regularity. But, it took until the 25th minute before another half chance, this time Enderby’s cross was flicked on by a Charlton defender, looping onto the crossbar before bouncing to safety. 

Arsenal eliminated at home by Brighton, Chelsea and Man City in action on Easter Monday, there was a real opportunity for the Reds to take a giant stride in the capital towards making a return their but this time with Wembley on their minds, however, the stubborn and confident visitors had other ideas with Taylor’s side struggling to make their superiority in league standings count as a frustrating first 45 ended goalless.

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The early exchanges of the second half saw a far greater level of dominance for the Reds, but Taylor, still seeking a stranglehold, turned to the bench and introduced Olsson, Thomas and Alejandra Bernabe shortly before the hour mark. 

With little to no threat forthcoming from the hosts, Liverpool began to exert their dominance as the clock ticked on nervously, and despite creating few clear-cut chances, set pieces were becoming a more regular occurrence and perhaps a route to a winner. 

A 20-year high crowd at the Valley started to vent their frustration at the referee as their players showed signs of tiring and perhaps buckling under the pressure put on them with extra time and potential penalties coming into view. 

Essentially attack against defence in the final 15 minutes, the ball was finally in the back of the net via an instinctive Thomas finish, only for the assistant’s flag to put an immediate end to the celebrations before the begun. 

Seven minutes of added time wasn’t enough for either side to break the deadlock despite the best efforts of both, and it was into extra time to try and separate the two.

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After a lengthy layoff, it was time to welcome Shaw back to the first team fold as half-time in extra time approached, with neither side carving out a gilt-edged chance in the opening 15 minutes. 

Jenna Clark, captain for the day and undoubtedly Liverpool’s best player on the pitch, tried to force her teammates on as penalties loomed large. But when the defining moment did eventually come, it was perhaps the fairytale ending as Zara Shaw, returning 358 days after suffering a second ACL injury on international duty with England Under 17s, scrambled home perhaps the scruffiest goal of all time to clinch the win.

What a story for the 18-year-old Scouser. 

Whilst the first half of the season did little in terms of capturing the imagination for Reds fans, the form since the turn of the year and now a FA Cup semi-final spot should go some way to a feeling that the Women could well fly the flag for Liverpool between now and the end of the season.