Soccer-Chelsea held by West Ham but stay top of WSL  | Football News

LONDON, – A stoppage-time goal by Shekiera Martinez gave West Ham United a 2-2 draw away at Chelsea on Sunday to breathe new life into the Women’s Super League title race as the defending champions dropped points for only the third time this season.

After being 2-1 down at halftime, West Ham played superbly in the second half and got the goal their efforts deserved late on as Martinez scored with a header to move them up to seventh spot in the standings on 19 points.

With four of the season’s 22 league games remaining, unbeaten Chelsea are on 48 points, six clear of second-placed Arsenal, who hammered Crystal Palace 4-0 to push the bottom side closer to relegation.

Chelsea opened up a two-goal lead in the first 20 minutes thanks to strikes from Maika Hamano and Aggie Beever-Jones, but West Ham battled back to grab an unlikely draw against a side aiming for their sixth straight WSL title.

“We are really proud to get this point. The first 20 minutes was not the start we wanted but we were really happy that we scored that goal in the first half,” Martinez told Sky Sports.

Earlier, third-placed Manchester United, who are level on points with Arsenal, eased to a 2-0 win over Everton, while fourth-placed Manchester City beat Brighton & Hove Albion 2-1 to move to 35 points from 18 games.

At the other end of the 12-team table, Palace remain rooted to the bottom having amassed nine points so far, four fewer than second-from-bottom Aston Villa, who came from behind to secure a 2-1 away win at Liverpool that eases their fears of the drop.

Leicester City look to be safe in 10th spot on 16 points after a 1-1 draw at home against Tottenham Hotspur.

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