Emma Hayes to leave Chelsea at end of season for career outside of WSL

Aston Villa's problems deepened significantly as they sunk to a 6-0 defeat against Chelsea on a miserable afternoon in Walsall. First half strikes from Millie Bright and Fran Kirby set the current champions on their way. Johanna Rytting Kaneryd, Ashley Lawrence, Aggie Beever-Jones and Niamh Charles added goals in the second to secure an emphatic victory.

Hayes, who will leave Chelsea at the end of the season, was hampered in her selection by the late finishing of the international break. With Sam Kerr on the bench after a long trip back from Australia, there was a starting place for Mia Fishel, Johanna Rytting Kaneryd, Jessie Fleming and Erin Cuthbert.

As Villa sat deep, Hayes' side grew in confidence and a breakthrough was inevitable. Lackadaisical defending from Lehmann allowed Chelsea a corner. The initial header from Mia Fishel was cleared brilliantly off the line by Daly but with Villa's defence static, Bright was on hand at the far post. It was the perfect way to mark her 250th appearance in a Blues shirt.

Chelsea's second followed not long after with Kirby finally adding her name to the team sheet. Her initial shot was blocked off the line by Danielle Turner but came straight back to her to squeeze home. She almost had another just before the break, only to be denied by Van Domselaar once more.

The danger of chasing a game is that one is always left susceptible at the back, especially with the pace of Chelsea's forwards. With Turner losing possession in the middle, Rytting Kaneryd took off from the halfway line, leaving the defence in her wake, and made no mistake with her finish.

Hayes rang the changes, but it had no disruption on the visitors' flow. A turnover of possession once again saw Fleming find Lawrence to tap home for her first Chelsea goal. Another substitute, academy graduate Beever-Jones, produced a cool finish for the visitors' fifth before the brilliant Charles rounded off the scoring.

It was a victory that returned Chelsea to the top of the table ahead of the rest of the weekend’s fixtures. For Villa, however, huge questions remain, not only on how they recover from this poor run of form but also whether their manager Ward can survive. Sophie Downey