Leicester City 5-2 Bristol City: Foxes come from behind in dominant WSL win
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Leicester beat Bristol City 4-2 in the return fixture, winning at Ashton Gate in October
Leicester City were made to come from behind to beat Women's Super League strugglers Bristol City in a thrilling match at King Power Stadium.
The Foxes were dominant from the beginning but went behind against the run of play when Ffion Morgan dinked a misplaced Lize Kop clearance over the Leicester goalkeeper's head.
But Leicester continued to threaten in the final third and restored parity when Yuka Momiki chipped Shae Yanez from a tight angle.
Momiki's Japanese compatriot Saori Takarada bundled home from close range after Aileen Wheelan had an effort cleared off the line, but Leicester were not in the clear yet.
Bristol City forward Amalie Thestrup sent a low drive into the bottom corner after the break, but Janice Cayman fired past Yanez to restore Leicester's advantage.
A moment of quality from Jutta Rantala put the result beyond doubt when she whipped an expert finish into the top corner.
Denny Draper, 16, scored her first professional goal to make it five, tapping home from a Rantala pass.
The visitors were unable to fight back and suffered their 10th loss of the season, remaining bottom of the division and five points behind second-bottom Brighton.
Leicester are seventh with 16 points.
Bristol City undone by relentless Leicester
Avoiding relegation is the priority for top-flight returnees Bristol City, who once again did their utmost to battle and try to pick up crucial points.
They held Aston Villa to a 2-2 draw last time out, however they were unable to do enough to nullify Leicester on Sunday.
It was apparent the Vixens would have to be on the back foot from early on, with Yanez being called upon to tip efforts from CJ Bott and Rantala over the crossbar.
Cayman and Sam Tierney both sent efforts narrowly wide as Willie Kirk's Foxes relentlessly pressed in the final third.
While they lacked the finishing touch in the opening exchanges, they clicked in attack after going behind and worked tirelessly to ensure they got the better of Bristol City.
The visitors were totally overrun in the final third and struggled as Leicester pressed in numbers, and as the Foxes maintained their aggression they just could not keep up.
Leicester's final-third dominance resulted in them having 30 shots to Bristol City's six, and holding 72.1% of the possession.
After the international break, Bristol City face what could be one of their most pivotal games of the season as they take on second-bottom Brighton on Sunday, 3 March, and will need to turn things around if they are to close the gap.