WSL talking points: Tullis-Joyce takes charge and is Shaw the perfect striker?

Not only did Khadija “Bunny” Shaw score a record-extending ninth WSL hat-trick, she scored a “perfect hat-trick” for the fourth time in the competition, something nobody else has managed more than once. Against West Ham the Jamaica striker opened the scoring with her left foot, headed home her second off the underside of the crossbar and tucked in her third with her right foot late on. It helped her side towards a 5-0 win that opened up a two-point gap at the top of the table and stretched Shaw’s lead in the race to be the top division’s top scorer to a five-goal advantage over her nearest challenger, Océane Hurtré. Can anybody stop her relentless pursuit of another Golden Boot? It would appear not.

Are Liverpool getting the points that their performances deserve? Arguably not, on Sunday’s showing. A 2-1 defeat against Arsenal left Gareth Taylor’s side just two places above the automatic relegation zone and just one spot above the relegation playoff place – despite creating plenty of chances and striking the crossbar, as they impressed in possession. Their defender Grace Fisk feels they are on the right path, saying: “Between both boxes I think we’re one of the best in the league, hands down. Sometimes, I’m watching the way our midfield is playing and the way they move, it’s just a joy to watch.” She added: “We gave it a good fight, I hope the fans see that, but it just wasn’t to be.”

London City Lionesses kept pace with Manchester City and Chelsea in the race for the WSL title ahead of a huge opportunity to gain ground next week. The Bromley-based side cruised to a 4-1 win against Birmingham on Sunday, keeping them third while moving them four points behind Chelsea, who face the leaders and title rivals City next week. One or both of the two leading sides will drop points at Stamford Bridge, allowing London City to gain ground in the race – if they beat struggling Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. On the prospect of closing in on their rivals, the Lionesses head coach, Eder Maestre, said: “First we need to have a good result against Arsenal. The Emirates is going to be a very challenging environment so hopefully we can have a very good result and close the gap.”

Manchester United may have a negative goal difference, having scored 10 and conceded 11 in nine WSL games, but they seem to have found the defensive solidity they were missing at the start of the season. Eight of those 11 goals conceded came in their opening three games as Eva Olid’s side adapted to the tactical demands and style of the new manager. “At the start, we didn’t have time together, just three or four weeks, and now we have more time together, I can feel the team improving,” the manager said after the 1-0 win over Aston Villa. “Still a lot of things to keep working on, not everything is perfect, but it’s good to see the way how things are progressing.” The Red Devils have kept three clean sheets in their past five WSL games and against Villa the backline and goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce were critical. “The opposition had two big chances and Phallon always helps,” said Olid. “I think that we need more confidence. I feel that the confidence is still a little low and it’s something we need to dedicate a lot of time to improve.”

The result may have been crushing for Charlton, who are still yet to pick up a point in the WSL, but there were rare positives for Karen Hills to take from their 3-2 loss to Crystal Palace. It was the first time they had scored twice in a game this campaign and they accrued twice as many shots on target, six to three, than the home side. “At the end of the day, we’re all in this together. We’re all learning,” said Hills after Bethany England’s 90th-minute winner. “We’re all in a new league, playing against new opposition. But we knew Crystal Palace, we know them really, really well, and that game today was us. We played like a Charlton team does and I thought the performance deserved more.” Charlton have proved they can score at this level. Now they need better defensive performances if they are to earn their first points.

Everton put on a display of defensive mettle as they thwarted Chelsea to earn a valuable point at Stamford Bridge. It was a performance that illustrated why they have the joint-second meanest defence in the WSL. The partnership of Naomi Layzell and Rion Ishikawa in the centre of the backline looked resilient once again, making a combined 29 defensive contributions. Layzell herself dominated in the box, making 14 clearances. Full-backs Hannah Blundell and Hikaru Kitagawa were crucial in nullifying the threat posed by Sandy Baltimore and Ellie Carpenter in wide areas. The latter, in particular, has been crucial to Chelsea’s attack this campaign with five goal involvements but was registered just one opportunity on Saturday. The home side, in general, were restricted to chances from set pieces. While creating 20 opportunities on goal, they had an xG of just 0.51 from open play, a clear indicator of how Everton were able to frustrate them.