Sky Sports columnist Laura Hunter analyses the big talking points from the sixth round of Women's Super League matches, bringing you closer to the key stories at the heart of the women's game. Plus: Vote on the topics you want covered next week.
Are Chelsea back in business?
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It's been a long time since Chelsea entered a domestic campaign as underdogs. The bookies might have had them as favourites to win the WSL title before a ball was kicked but most hardened observers chose Man City as the more likely champions. The market appeared to be hedging their bets on history.
While I still believe Man City are the team to beat, Chelsea's start to the season cannot be ignored. After seven played they are top by virtue of goal difference, with a perfect record since their opening day draw with Aston Villa. City and Chelsea's results in a head-to-head count are actually identical - but of course the nip and tuck is more nuanced than that.
Chelsea's win from behind to beat Crystal Palace at the weekend, without Keira Walsh or Lauren James, was a deliberate show of strength. And an indication of Sonia Bompastor's intent to balance her squad between priorities. The Blues host Roma in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Are they equipped to sustain such momentum? The numbers suggest they are well placed to compete with Man City. Chelsea are the league's top scorers, best chance creators and have conceded the fewest goals against. Dig a bit deeper into the data and their improved output presents the picture of a team revitalised.
It may have taken two years, but Bompastor has finally got her wish. The Frenchwoman always wanted her side to have greater technical control but was struggling to get the arrangement right, especially in midfield. At long last, Chelsea are a team with an identifiable attacking style, based on the principles of progressive, possession-orientated football.
The system relies heavily on high-advancing full-backs, who are dynamic enough to stretch the pitch in possession and make it more compact when the ball is lost. Ellie Carpenter and Katie McCabe are perfect for the role.
Carpenter is the WSL's best in class when it comes to two-way influence. She ranks as the league's highest-performing defender in terms of goals scored (3), shots taken (17), touches in the opposition box (49) and open-play crosses (40). She and McCabe have generated 17 chances for team-mates apiece.
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In central areas, the introduction of Lexi Potter has encouraged a higher role for Keira Walsh and the combination has meant Chelsea are able to dictate tempo with greater success and variation. Aesthetically, Chelsea are a better watch, but crucially, with more reliable end product.
Melvine Malard was an inspired signing in the summer, boasting four WSL goals from four starts so far, matched by the consistency of James. Goals are coming from elsewhere, too, as the intensity of Chelsea's midfield press continues to generate high turnovers and therefore opportunities for lesser-known scorers. Walsh and Sjoeke Nusken have bagged four between them.
Such consistency of delivery is enough to excite even the most skeptical of spectators. And Bompastor must take credit too, making two changes at half-time against Palace to turn the result on its head.
No doubt Chelsea in a relentless rhythm spells danger for the competition. Only time will tell if such an uptick means they remain close chasers of Man City - or have in fact managed to overtake them.
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Are Man Utd in better shape than first thought?
Man City won 3-0 home and away in the derby last season. It was the least competitive that fixture had been for some time. And there was plenty to suggest a similar pattern would repeat itself this term, given City's perfect start and United's patchy evolution under Eva Olid.
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But Olid's side have turned a corner in recent weeks. Now on a four-game unbeaten streak, the Spaniard's possession-led approach is starting to take recognisable shape.
Against Charlton last Sunday, United completed 700 passes with an accuracy of 88.7 per cent. Both club record high figures in a WSL game. This week, they went toe-to-toe with the league's pass-masters and boasted an equal share of the ball, landing more accurate passes overall and a higher amount in the opposition half. Few sides are technically capable of doing that to City.
"If you want to see the progression of this United team, this is a great example of it," said Sky Sports' Izzy Christiansen on co-comms at Leigh Sports Village. United were breaking lines with the frequency of a side who had been modelled on this tactical plan for years.
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Jess Park in particular was outstanding, involved prolifically in the build-up phase. She is the glue. The ball-carrier, but also the player with the cognitive ability to play in a way that accepts responsibility for being at the heart of every attack. Importance is placed on Ella Toone too.
Such numbers represent more than baby steps. It's evidence that United's squad, fairly modest in size, can produce the systematic style Olid prefers while also getting results. To be the first to take points off City is a triumph in itself. They have jumped into fourth in the table as reward.
Of course there are many more layers to this approach and Olid is relying on key contributors to make it work consistently. But major ground has been broken over the past six weeks. The manager is clearly enthused: "How this team has built in confidence from day one to now, in a short period of time, the progression has been massive."
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