Manchester City 1-0 Reading: Chloe Kelly’s late winner puts City top of Women’s Super League

Chloe Kelly scored a late winner for Manchester City to keep their Women’s Super League title challenge on course after a nail-biting encounter with Reading at the Academy Stadium.

An 11th straight WSL victory moves City a point above title rivals Chelsea, who host struggling Aston Villa on Sunday.

Reading drop to seventh place, a point behind Brighton.

City looked destined for a frustrating evening as chance after chance went begging in the first half, with Reading goalkeeper Grace Moloney putting in an impressive performance and making numerous saves.

Hemp smacked the post when she was set up by Georgia Stanway, before the latter missed a golden opportunity from close range.

There were also chances for Lucy Bronze and Caroline Weir, while USA international Rose Lavelle had a shot tipped over the bar by Moloney early on.

Reading’s Amalie Eikeland forced a smart save from opposing goalkeeper Ellie Roebuck as the Royals held a threat on the counter-attack and they looked set to earn a point for their tireless defensive efforts before Kelly eventually broke the deadlock.

City boss Gareth Taylor had called for a response following his side’s Champions League quarter-final first-leg defeat by Barcelona and, despite being made to wait, this result ensured City maintain a strong foothold in a two-horse race for the title.

Their time at the top could be brief, though, as defending champions Chelsea will return to the summit should they beat relegation-battling Villa.

The only downside to City’s win was the substitution of recently-returned defender Demi Stokes shortly into the second half – she went down with an apparent injury before heading immediately down the tunnel with a member of staff.