James steers Chelsea to win over Leicester, Arsenal beat West Ham

LONDON : Chelsea's Lauren James scored twice as her side beat Leicester City 5-2 on Sunday to stay top of the FA Women's Super League going into the final international break of 2023, while Arsenal remain second after a 3-0 win over West Ham United.

James struck in the second minute to give Chelsea the lead, and an own goal by Courtney Nevin three minutes later had them 2-0 up, and though Leicester pegged them back to 2-1 and 3-2, a second goal from James and an Agnes Beever-Jones strike secured the three points for the home side.

Arsenal's Frida Maanum also netted in the second minute for her side before England international Beth Mead, who recently returned after a long period on the sidelines due to an ACL injury, added two more first-half goals in their 3-0 win against West Ham.

Chelsea remain unbeaten in the league and top the standings on 22 points, three ahead of Arsenal and seven ahead of third-placed Manchester United, who cruised to a 2-0 win away to Bristol City.

Liverpool moved up to fourth with a 4-0 win over Brighton & Hove Albion, but they could be replaced by either Manchester City or Tottenham Hotspur who face each other later on Sunday.