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Anne Butzelaar, Women’s Football Editor

London City Lionesses made an instant impact on the opening weekend of the Women’s Super League season, claiming an impressive 2-1 win against Manchester United in Bromley as Alexia Putellas made her competitive debut for the club.

Much of the build-up to the match had, understandably, focused on London City’s ambitious summer recruitment. Eder Maestre’s side started the new campaign carrying significant expectations after the arrival of several high-profile players, but this opening display showed there is far more to the team than simply the big names brought in.

London City began on the front foot and quickly took control, looking assured in possession while making it extremely difficult for United to establish any rhythm.

The home side got their reward when Alanna Kennedy’s header was turned into the United net by Julia Zigiotti Olme, whose own goal gave London City an early and deserved lead.

Instead of sitting back after going ahead, Maestre’s team continued to press forward.

Delphine Cascarino caused problems consistently and went close to adding another, while Jayde Riviere had to make a goal-line clearance to keep United in the contest.

At the other end, London City had very little to deal with.

United did not manage a single shot in the opening 45 minutes as the hosts’ energetic press stopped Eva Olid’s side from taking any meaningful control. The visitors struggled to move the ball through midfield and were repeatedly forced backwards when trying to play out from the back.

It made for a difficult first half in Olid’s first Women’s Super League match in charge.

United came back after the break with much greater intent and gradually began to offer more of a threat, but London City stayed composed.

Although the visitors enjoyed more of the ball and started to get into more promising positions, the hosts still looked dangerous whenever openings appeared.

With fewer than 10 minutes left, London City finally got the second goal their display deserved.

Daniëlle van de Donk delivered it in style, producing an excellent flick to find the net and give Maestre’s side some valuable breathing space going into the closing stages.

United did eventually respond through Simi Awujo, who scored in stoppage time to cut the deficit. However, the goal came too late to spark a comeback, and London City saw out the remaining minutes to take all three points.

As expected, there was significant attention on Putellas throughout the evening. The two-time Ballon d’Or winner, who was named London City captain earlier this week, received a warm welcome before making her competitive debut for the club. By the exceptionally high standards of the Spaniard, it was a relatively quiet first outing, but there were still glimpses of the technical class and composure that have defined her career.

Putellas was far from the only summer signing to leave an impression.

With so many new players arriving during the summer, one of the biggest questions before the opening weekend was how quickly Maestre would be able to bring everything together.

The early signs were certainly positive.

London City looked organised, energetic and confident for much of the game. Their pressing created major problems for United, while their ability to threaten from set-piece situations exposed an area that has troubled the visitors before.

The only significant concern on an otherwise hugely positive evening came in the second half, when Lucia Corrales was forced off with what initially appeared to be a serious injury. She later confirmed it was her ribs.

For United, meanwhile, the opening display raised far more questions than answers.

Olid has spoken about wanting her side to play attacking football, but there was little sign of that during a particularly disappointing first half.

There was a clear improvement after the interval, and Awujo’s late goal at least ensured United left Bromley having scored, but the visitors had already left themselves with far too much to do.

It is important not to draw firm conclusions from the first match of a new season, especially with a new manager trying to implement her ideas.

However, after an underwhelming summer transfer window, there were already concerns about whether United had strengthened enough to keep up with their rivals and challenge for Champions League qualification.

Their opening performance did little to calm those concerns.

For London City, though, it was an almost perfect start.

Their summer recruitment generated considerable excitement and expectation before the new season. Against United, they offered the first sign that the hype around them may well be justified.