Ryan Asman

West Ham United beat their Women’s Championship opponents London City Lionesses 4-1 in the Women’s League Cup on Sunday afternoon.

Viviane Asseyi scored a brace whilst Manuela Pavi and Riko Ueki also found the net for the Women’s Super League side.  Sofia Jakobsson scored the Prides consolation goal late in the first half.

There were no clear chances in the opening 10 minutes at Hayes Lane as both sides settled into the match and got used to conditions with the strong wind caused by Storm Bert.

In the 14th minute, Asseyi opened the scoring for the Hammers when she was played in by Marika Bergman Lundin and finished low past Grace Moloney from the edge of the area.

The next effort on target didn’t come until the 29th minute when Bergman Lundin’s strike for the visitors was held by London City’s goalkeeper.

The closest the home side went to finding the net in the opening 30 minutes or so was a deep cross from Emma Mukandi that just went wide of the far post.

A couple of minutes before half time, Mukandi’s lofted ball forward found Isobel Goodwin but her low shot rolled wide of the post for London City.

In the final minute of the first half, Chantelle Boye-Hlorkah’s 30-yard strike dipped just over the crossbar as the Pride came close to equalising.

London City Lionesses did equalise in the first minute of stoppage time when a ball forward from Boye-Hlorkah found Jakobsson and her curling shot from 18-yards found the corner of the net.

After London City’s half time substitute Miljana Ivanovic’s run forward, Boye-Hlorkah’s shot was rather tame and dealt with by Megan Walsh in West Ham’s goal early in the second half.

Bergman Lundin shot from 25-yards for the Hammers in the 55th minute was easily saved by Moloney.

West Ham retook the lead in the 71st minute when a loose ball from London City was picked up by Colombian international Pavi and she finished to score her first goal for the club.

A minute later, the visitors made it 3-1 when Ueki played in Asseyi who went around the keeper and slotted low into an empty net to score her second of the match.

Ruesha Littlejohn saw a shot deflected behind for the hosts in the 75th minute as they looked to get back into the match.

Boye-Hlorkah’s strike from 25-yards was stopped by the visitors goalie in the 88th minute.

In the fourth minute of additional time, Ueki scored West Ham’s fourth with a low shot from 12-yards.

All four goals conceded by London City Lionesses could be seen as avoidable with the ball being lost fairly easily in midfield or from sloppy passes that the visitors benefited from.

The Hammers top Group C with 6 points from their 2 games whilst the Pride are in 3rd place on 3 points, level with Southampton.

Line ups

London City Lionesses (4-2-3-1): Moloney, Neville, Meyong (Imuran 79’), Campbell (Littlejohn 57’), Mukandi, Scofield (Fitzgerald 79’), Brougham, Jakobsson (Wilde 69’), Asllani (c) (Ivanovic 46’), Boye-Hlorkah, Goodwin

Unused substitutes: Orman, Goldie, Brown

Goal – Jakobsson 45’+1

West Ham United (4-2-3-1): M. Walsh, Mengwen (Denton 63’), Cooke, Zadorsky (c) (Saez 46’), Smith, Brynjarsdottir, Bergman Lundin, Harries (Siren 63’), Piubel (Ueki 68’), Pavi, Asseyi

Unused substitutes: Szemik, Tysiak, Houssein, S. Walsh

Goals – Asseyi 14’, 72’, Pavi 71’, Ueki 90’+4

Referee – Grace Lowe