Aston Villa Women endured a tough start to life in the Barclays FA Women's Super League, as they were beaten 2-0 by Manchester City Women at Villa Park.
Gemma Davies' side looked promising in possession, but were punished for several defensive mix-ups early on which they ultimately couldn't recover from.
England international, Georgia Stanway, scored both City goals having been rewarded for pressing Villa high up the pitch.
Chances came and went in search of a route back into the game, but the game proved to be a harsh lesson of what to expect in the top flight of women's football.
There were plenty of new faces in the Villa XI, as Caro Siems, Ramona Petzelberger, Chloe Arthur, Stine Larsen and Diana Silva all made their competitive debuts in claret & blue.
However it was a familiar face in the City line-up that put the visitors ahead inside 10 minutes.
Following a defensive mix-up between Nat Haigh and Sian Rogers, Stanway closed the Villa 'keeper down in a flash, before tapping into an empty net to open the scoring.
City doubled the lead in almost identical fashion, as Stanway closed down Rogers once more. The England forward saw Rogers' attempted clearance ricochet off her leg and into the back of the net.
Despite the mishaps in their own third, Gemma Davies' side regrouped effectively, and perhaps should've been awarded a goal through Larsen that was flagged offside.
Larsen then saw a header cleared off the line by Demi Stokes just before the break, adding to the hosts' frustration.
Villa started the second half as brightly as they had finished the first, but Silva, and then Emma Follis, both missed golden opportunities to halve the deficit.
Emily Syme and Shania Hayles came off the bench to inject some energy into the attacking third in the closing stages, but Villa were left unrewarded despite an encouraging performance in their Super League debut.
Villa: Rogers, Franklin-Fraiture, N’Dow (Ale 68'), Haigh, Siems, Petzelberger, Arthur, Ewers (C) (Syme 68'), Follis (Hayles 74'), Larsen, Silva
Subs: Weiss, Asante, West, Hutton, Haywood, Hayles, Hanssen
Goals: Stanway (6', 21')
Who’s Next?
Villa make their first away trip of the 2020/21 season when they take on Reading at the Madejski Stadium on September 13th (2pm).
