Chelsea blew the Women’s Super League title race wide open with an Erin Cuthbert double and this dominant win helped exorcise the demons of a brutal home defeat by Arsenal in October.

“We’re building momentum,” said Chelsea’s manager, Emma Hayes. “Everyone watching us can see it’s a team that’s in the ascendancy.”

But she was coy about her side’s title credentials. “We didn’t take the first position until April last year. We’re third and we’re enjoying looking at what’s going on above us. The league is out of our hands. I can’t control it.”

By pulling to within two points of the Gunners Chelsea are in the running to retain the trophy they lifted in May after surviving a late goal and flurry of pressure from the home team.

Arsenal v Chelsea: Women's Super League – live! Read more

Chelsea arrived at Borehamwood a very different side from the one hammered by Arsenal on their own turf. “That was a moment in time that was never going to happen again. There’s not a 5-0 gap between us and today showed that,” said Hayes.

Fran Kirby was fit enough for the bench only following her double against Reading in the League Cup in midweek, but Chelsea have found a way to win in her absence. Since their humbling by the Gunners the Blues had put together an 11-game unbeaten run, keeping 11 clean sheets – a scoreless draw against Birmingham were the only dropped points.

With Chelsea’s squad depth the difference in their title win ahead of Manchester City last season, they are on the front foot once more. Arsenal suffered their first defeat at Manchester City in December and, already struggling with injuries, were dealt a blow when 10-goal Daniëlle van de Donk was ruled out after picking up a thigh injury in training. It showed in the benches, Arsenal fielding three outfield subs to Chelsea’s six.

“We’ve got seven starting players in the stand and the soccer gods aren’t smiling on us at the moment but hopefully it’s not as bad as it could be,” said the Arsenal manager, Joe Montemurro. “I don’t make excuses. Chelsea were the better team today and they won.

“It’s a game-by-game proposition. We don’t know which players are coming back, when players are coming back and how bad the injuries are.”

Chelsea dominated a feisty first half. Three minutes in they had their first chance, a Magdalena Eriksson free-kick flashing over Pauline Peyraud-Magnin’s crossbar.

That set the tone with Ji So-yun, Karen Carney and Beth England providing the main danger on the right. Their relentless pace was bound to force an opening and just before the half-hour mark it did.

Some neat interplay from Carney and Ji led to the full-back Hannah Blundell sweeping in a delightful cross which was powerfully headed home by Cuthbert.

With no love lost between the teams Carney earned the first yellow of the match after heftily bodychecking Katie McCabe, sending the Arsenal No 15 flying between the dugouts at the foot of the fourth official.

After the break the Gunners came out fighting, seeing more of the ball in the opening exchanges than they had in the first period. But it felt inevitable the bright Chelsea forward line would do further damage to a fragile Arsenal defence.

With an hour gone they punished the Gunners for not making more of their brighter period, Cuthbert again in the right place for the Blues to volley in from 15 yards.

Kim Little’s whipped cross from the right was turned in by Vivianne Miedema to halve the deficit but provided little consolation forArsenal for the dropped points.

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City go top

• Manchester City leapfrogged Arsenal to the top of the WSL, having played a game more than the Gunners, with a 3-1 win at West Ham. First-half goals from Caroline Weir and Lauren Hemp put City ahead before Jane Ross pulled one back. Nikita Parris became the first player to score 40 WSL goals with City’s third.

• Marc Skinner suffered defeat in his last game in charge of Birmingham as Gemma Evans’ first-half goal earned Bristol City three points on the road.

• Brighton and Everton saw out a goalless draw, while a injury-time winner from Courtney Sweetman-Kirk secured Liverpool a 2-1 over Yeovil.