Chelsea were given a major scare before booking a spot in the FA Cup fifth round as the defending champions came from behind to seal a 3-1 victory over West Ham after extra time.
Viviane Asseyi gave the Hammers a shock lead after 18 minutes and Rehanne Skinner’s side, who have won just once in the Women’s Super League this season, looked unflustered for large spells at Kingsmeadow.
An early exit looked to be beckoning for the Blues, but Mia Fishel drew the hosts level with 20 minutes remaining to keep alive their hopes of winning the competition for the fourth year in a row.
Erin Cuthbert and Sjoeke Nusken netted in the first half of extra time as Chelsea avoided an upset but their struggles in Sam Kerr’s injury-enforced absence will not have gone unnoticed by their rivals.
There was no such drama for Manchester United as last season’s beaten finalists routed Newcastle 5-0 at Leigh, where Nikita Parris struck in either half to subdue a sizeable travelling contingent.
Third-tier Newcastle headed into this fixture on the back of a 30-game unbeaten streak – their last loss was in December 2022 – but the Red Devils’ class told as Ella Toone opened the scoring.
Parris then bagged a brace before substitutes Rachel Williams and Melvine Malard added gloss to the scoreline to emphasise the gulf in quality between these two teams.
Arsenal were similarly untroubled as goals from Alessia Russo, Lia Walti and Stina Blackstenius put them on the path to a 5-1 victory over Watford.
Seventeen-year-old Michelle Agyemang, who joined Watford on a dual-sign agreement from Arsenal last year, pulled one back, but Amanda Ilestedt and Frida Maanum wrapped up a comfortable win for the Gunners.
Their only concern centred on Beth Mead needing treatment on her right leg at full-time but the England forward was able to walk off the field.
Manchester City brushed aside Durham 4-0 thanks to a double from Jill Roord after Laura Coombs had broken the deadlock early on, with Mary Fowler completing the scoring in the closing stages.
WSL side Tottenham fought from 2-0 down to beat Championship outfit Sheffield United 3-2, with Rosella Ayane scoring the winner in the sixth minute of stoppage time.
Liverpool left it late to beat WSL basement team Bristol City as Gemma Bonner struck five minutes from time to secure a 1-0 win, with the Reds down to 10 for the final half hour as Ceri Holland was dismissed.
Karoline Olesen’s opener and Katja Snoeijs’ double helped Everton to a 3-0 victory over fellow WSL opponents Aston Villa.
Fifth-tier Luton were the lowest-ranked team to reach this stage but were unceremoniously dumped out after a 6-0 thumping by top-flight Brighton, who scored four times in the final half-hour.
Crystal Palace scored three times in the final quarter of an hour to come from behind and defeat Blackburn 3-1, Southampton won 2-0 at Sunderland and Nottingham Forest thrashed Plymouth 6-1.
Charlton came from a goal down to thump Ipswich 4-1, Birmingham won 3-1 at Burnley after extra time and Wolves edged Reading 2-1.
Leicester and London City Lionesses made sure of their spots in Monday night’s fifth-round draw with 4-0 wins over Derby and Moneyfields respectively.
Hurtig the hero after late goal sends Arsenal into Champions League quarters
Lina Hurtig's 89th minute winner ensured Arsenal progressed to the quarter-finals of the Women's Champions League after edging Juventus 1-0 on Thursday.
After being frustrated for large parts of the encounter, Hurtig bundled home from close range after Martina Lenzini's poor clearance to book the Gunners' place in the last eight.
Despite Arsenal dominating the early exchanges, it was Juventus who had the first sight of goal, though Eva Schatzer's effort was easy for Daphne van Domselaar to gather.
In a first half that saw just two shots on target, both coming from the visitors, Renee Slegers' substitutes proved to be the difference for Arsenal.
Slegers introduced Beth Mead, Stina Blackstenius and Hurtig late on, with the latter somehow putting Kim Little's cross over the bar from five yards out.
However, the Swede would atone for her earlier error, combining with fellow substitute Blackstenius to net against her former club and send them out of the competition with two group games remaining.
Meanwhile, in Group D, Barcelona edged closer to the quarter-finals of the competition with a convincing 4-1 victory over St. Polten at the Generali Arena.
The reigning champions are still three points behind Manchester City following their 2-1 win over Hammarby, and know a win against the Swedes next month will see them progress.
Kika Nazareth opened the scoring in the 20th minute after capitalising on a mistake by Kamila Dubcova, notching her second nine minutes later from close range.
Barca found themselves three goals up at the break when Vicky Lopez netted her first goal in the competition to put the result beyond doubt.
There was also a landmark moment for Alexia Putellas, who netted her 200th goal for the club with a well-taken effort into the far corner.
Valentina Madl took some of the shine off an otherwise impressive display from the visitors, who have now taken their tally to 20 goals from their four matches in the competition.
Guardiola agrees two-year contract extension with Man City
Pep Guardiola will be Manchester City manager for at least two more seasons after 2024-25, after he signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday.
The 53-year-old was coming to the end of his City deal, which was due to expire at the end of the current campaign, but he has opted to remain at the Etihad Stadium.
The deal itself will take Guardiola's tenure at the club to over a decade, making him City's longest-serving manager since Les McDowall in 1963.
There had been suggestions that he may leave at the end of the season following the announcement that director of football Txiki Begiristain was on his way out.
Guardiola was strongly linked with the England job after Gareth Southgate resigned in the wake of their Euro 2024 final defeat, but the Football Association appointed Thomas Tuchel last month.
“Manchester City means so much to me," Guardiola said. “This is my ninth season here; we have experienced so many amazing times together. I have a really special feeling for this football club.
“That is why I am so happy to be staying for another two more seasons.
“Thank you to everyone for continuing to trust and support me – The Owner, The Chairman Khaldoon, Ferran, Txiki, the players and, of course, the fans… everyone connected to Manchester City. It has always been an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to be here.
“I have said this many times before, but I have everything a manager could ever wish for, and I appreciate that so much.
“Hopefully, now we can add more trophies to the ones we have already won. That will be my focus.”
Having been appointed in 2016, Guardiola is by some distance Manchester City's most successful manager of all time, having won 18 major trophies during his time at the club.
That list includes their first-ever Champions League triumph in 2023 and six Premier League titles, including an unprecedented four on the spin.
He also boasts a 72.04% win percentage across all competitions, which is unsurprisingly the highest of any full-time City manager in history.
Shaw at the double as Man City progress in Champions League
Khadija Shaw scored twice as Manchester City beat Hammarby 2-1 to seal their place in the Women's Champions League quarter-finals.
Gareth Taylor's team entered Thursday's game with a perfect record in Group D, and their fourth win in as many European matches ensured they finished in the top two.
Shaw—the leading scorer in the Women's Super League this season with eight goals—put them ahead in the 31st minute, driving into the area after taking in Yui Hasegawa's pass before seeing her shot deflect into the top corner.
Shaw was booked for celebrating in front of the home fans despite appearing to have objects thrown at her from the stands, and Hammarby should have levelled when Julia Blakstad fired wide 10 minutes later.
The hosts did draw level three minutes into the second half as Ellen Wangerheim tapped home while City's Laura Blindkilde Brown was down appealing for a free-kick.
That parity was short-lived, though, as Shaw blasted into the top corner from 25 yards out, taking her overall tally for this season to 12 goals in all competitions.
In Group C, meanwhile, Bayern Munich lost their perfect record as they played out a 1-1 draw with Valerenga, boosting Arsenal's hopes of topping the pile.
Jovana Damnjanovic came off the bench to put Bayern ahead 15 minutes from time in Norway, but Elise Thorsnes headed home following an 88th-minute corner to snatch a point for the hosts.
Arsenal could now move within a point of Bayern when they face Juventus in Group C's other match later on Thursday.
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