Manchester City won the 2019/20 Vitality Women's FA Cup, with extra-time finishes from Georgia Stanway and Janine Beckie eventually undoing an Everton team who had defended as if their lives depended on it.
A key theme throughout City's stuttering start to the season has been a lack of penetration, and it looked as if it would prove costly yet again at Wembley. They did open the scoring on 40 minutes, eventually bludgeoning Everton into conceding through Sam Mewis, who took advantage of some defensive confusion at a set-piece.
As the game wore on, however, the Merseysiders were buoyed by the fact they remained in the game. Despite being camped in their half with all the traffic flowing towards them, they got themselves level through France forward Valérie Gauvin, whose towering header had manager Willie Kirk punching the air.
EQUALISER!
— Vitality Women's FA Cup (@VitalityWFACup) November 1, 2020
It had to be @GauvinValerie!
The striker was close to being taken off due to injury, but she’s got @EvertonWomen back in it ?#WomensFACupFinal pic.twitter.com/nMrwbMAtai
It was an interesting encounter between two teams who had been worlds apart as recently as 2016, when Manchester City were WSL champions and Everton were struggling to navigate the depths of WSL 2.
The first five matches of this season, however, have seen the Toffees win four, while City's eight points from 15 available have slumped them to fifth; they desperately needed a win here to get some momentum going.
Weir and former Everton striker Chloe Kelly nearly combined for a wonderful late winner, but the Scotland midfielder's long-range effort only stung the top of the bar, and it began to seem like it just would not be City's day.
It's tense...We're going to extra time! #WomensFACupFinal pic.twitter.com/aKsSAvPALU
— Vitality Women's FA Cup (@VitalityWFACup) November 1, 2020
Stanway couldn't believe her luck in extra-time when she found herself goal-side of Everton keeper Sandy MacIver, but Megan Finnigan was on hand with a game-saving challenge, before MacIver stopped Steph Houghton with one of the best reaction saves you're likely to see.
Eventually, however, it did arrive for City. It was Stanway who took advantage of some wonderful work from fellow substitute Jess Park to finish past the stellar MacIver at her near post.
If there was to be any doubt over the winners, it was wrapped up when Stanway played in Beckie who sent the last kick of the ball past a despairing MacIver.
Source: 90min
