Aston Villa Women 0-1 Chelsea Women

Aston Villa Women were beaten 1-0 by Chelsea at the Banks’s Stadium on Saturday.

Jessie Fleming scored the only goal as the champions edged out a spirited Villa side.

Carla Ward reverted to a back five for the visit of the Blues, with Meaghan Sargeant, Elisha N’Dow and Anita Asante forming the heart of the unit.

Elsewhere, captain Marisa Ewers made her first league start of the season, and Alisha Lehmann was chosen to lead the line in the continued absence of Emily Gielnik.

Ward will have been pleased with the way the game began, as neither side created much in the opening 15 minutes.

Lehmann caught a half-volley sweetly on the outside of the Chelsea area, but saw the attempt blocked promptly.

The visitors also had a pot-shot from distance, but it flew wide.

Emma Hayes’ side would take the lead soon after, though.

Fleming slipped her way through the centre of Villa’s defence with surprising ease, before confidently slotting the ball past Hannah Hampton.

Chelsea’s lead was so close to being doubled on 35 minutes when So Yun Ji crashed an effort against the crossbar from 30 yards out.

The attempt hit the underside of the woodwork and looked for a second as if it would bounce over the line, but Villa cleared the danger.

Chelsea searched for a second goal coming out of the half-time break, and again were so close to doing just that when Beth England tried to divert Erin Cuthbert’s driven centre.

Hampton, however, was alert to the danger and turned the effort over the bar.

The remainder of the second half contained little by way of clear-cut chances, and the visitors looked to put the game to bed by bringing on the formidable duo of Fran Kirby and Sam Kerr.

Villa weren’t to be disheartened, however, and almost snuck a stoppage-time equaliser when a couple of Sarah Mayling crosses veered dangerously close the Chelsea goal.

The referee’s final whistle would come too soon, though, as attention now turns towards next weekend’s Second City Derby.