Women’s FA Cup: Khiara Keating stars as Manchester City beat Arsenal, Mayra Ramirez scores as Chelsea progress

Laia Aleixandri scored the only goal of the game as Manchester City beat Arsenal 1-0 in the Women’s FA Cup fifth round at Meadow Park.

The first half ended goalless with Arsenal looking most likely to break the deadlock, but it was City who drew first blood with 15 minutes to play.

The visitors endured a late onslaught from Arsenal who searched for an equaliser, but held on to reach the quarter-finals thanks to an incredible performance from goalkeeper Khiara Keating.

The first half passed with little action and both goalkeepers were called into action just once apiece.

Arsenal’s tempo raised considerably in the second half and the hosts came close to an opener when Victoria Pelova curled an effort towards the right corner from 20 yards, but the ball whistled past the woodwork.

Goalkeeper Sabrina D'Angelo had to rely on her defence to dig her out of trouble when she passed the ball straight to Chloe Kelly to give City a sniff at goal, but to no avail.

The Gunners threatened again when Caitlin Foord bolted down the right and skipped past Kerstin Casparij before cutting inside for a shot from a tight angle. She forced a brave stop out of Keating who rushed off her line to close down the space.

More pressure was applied by Jonas Eidevall’s side as City stayed pinned in their own box during a string of home corners, and Keating was forced into a brilliant stop to deny a looped header.

The game was still goalless when the clock ticked over the hour mark, and then it was City’s turn to test the goalkeeper as Khadija Shaw’s header from a corner was clawed away by D'Angelo.

Leah Williamson was then called into action to clear another Shaw effort off the line as City threatened to force an opener.

The deadlock was broken on 74 minutes as Aleixandri pounced from a free-kick, slamming the ball home from close range after it ricocheted off Steph Catley’s thigh.

Arsenal threw everything at City as they looked to get back into the game, but Keating produced a series of excellent saves to keep The Gunners at bay.

The hosts thought they had got the better of Keating when the goalkeeper fumbled the ball on the line, but she reacted quickly enough to snatch it in time as City held on.

Chelsea were made to work for their victory at Crystal Palace and relied on some brilliance late on from Mayra Ramirez, who scored her first goal in a 1-0 win.

The score remained goalless as the match entered the final 10 minutes. The Blues worked a cross which was behind the path of Ramirez, who produced a sensational flick to guide the ball past goalkeeper Demi Lambourne.

Rachel Williams scored a late brace as Manchester United sealed a 3-1 victory at Southampton.

Ella Toone opened the scoring early on for United with a neat finish from the edge of the box, before Lexi Lloyd-Smith levelled the match in the 65th minute.

As the visitors floated a cross into the box in search of a winner less than 10 minutes later, Williams found the bottom corner with a header.

Williams added United’s third and her second to make sure of their spot in the last eight with another header, which just about crossed the line.

Brighton & Hove Albion booked their place in the next round thanks to a stunning late eight-minute hat-trick from substitute Emma Kullberg in a 4-1 win at Wolverhampton Wanderers.

With the game level in the 88th minute following goals from Bethan Merrick and Katie Robinson, Kullberg struck, tapping in from close range.

She added a second four minutes later to put the game to bed and then completed her hat-trick with another close-range finish.

Elsewhere, Liverpool made light work of London City Lionesses as Sophie Roman Haug and Melissa Lawley were on target in a 2-0 win.

The last spot in the quarter-finals was claimed by Everton, who demolished Nottingham Forest 7-1 at Grand Park Long Eaton in the evening.

With 20 minutes to play, the away side were 3-1 up after goals from Kathrine Moller Kuhl, Martine Piemonte and Justine Vanhaevermaet, with Charlotte Greengrass scoring for Forest.

Then the visitors ran riot. An own goal from Emily Batty in the 73rd minute, plus three goals in 10 minutes from Emma Bissell, Toni Duggan and Hanna Bennison, gave Everton a huge win.

- - -

TNT Sports presents the premium live sports rights previously carried by BT Sport including the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League, Gallagher Premiership Rugby, Investec Champions Cup, EPCR Challenge Cup, MotoGP, Cricket, UFC, Boxing and WWE. The streaming home for TNT Sports in the UK is discovery+, where fans can enjoy a subscription that includes TNT Sports, Eurosport and entertainment in one destination. You can also watch TNT Sports through BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media