Chelsea 5-2 Leicester: James at the double as champions ease to victory

Two goals for Lauren James helped leaders Chelsea to a 5-2 victory against Leicester – their 20th straight victory at home.

The Blues consolidated their position at the top of the Women’s Super League against a visiting Foxes side that perhaps did not deserve their margin of defeat.

It proved to be a catastrophic opening four minutes for Leicester, who found themselves two goals down.

Lauren James was too quick for Julie Thibauld after just one minute and 11 seconds and effortlessly slotted past Janina Leitzig.

The afternoon soon got even worse for both Leicester and Courtney Nevin in particular.

James collected a pass from Fran Kirby and delivered a cross into the area. Despite Leitzig palming away, defender Nevin found herself in the worst possible area and turned the ball into her own net.

Fresh from her hat-trick over Liverpool last weekend, James tested the visiting back line again with a dangerous cross in the 13th minute, while Kirby looped her effort from distance over the crossbar four minutes later.

Leicester got themselves back into the game after 26 minutes when Lena Petermann found Jutta Rantala in space on the left, and her near-post strike was too powerful for Ann-Katrin Berger.

Chelsea restored their two-goal advantage five minutes before the break when captain Sam Kerr fired home a Niamh Charles cross after being left in space six yards out.

After CJ Bott denied Charles on the line, Leicester struck back again just before the interval. Berger got her hands to an Aimee Palmer free-kick, but Sam Tierney turned in the rebound.

Chelsea were the more dominant side after the restart and James netted her second – and the fourth for the hosts – 13 minutes into the half. She picked up on a Kirby through ball to dink past Leitzig.

The Leicester shot-stopper had to match a Kerr run and shot after 63 minutes, while her defence was forced onto the back foot with increased Chelsea pressure.

A header from substitute Aggie Beever-Jones three minutes before time capped a fine day for Chelsea.