Arsenal hammered bottom club Leicester 4-0 on Sunday night to go four points clear atop the WSL.
Frida Maanum popped up with a brace of headers in just three minutes to help seal the win.
Jordan Nobbs hit the opener and Vivianne Miedema netted her 67th WSL goal by rounding off an incisive counter-attack.
Leicester's Jemma Purfield was then shown a straight red card for bringing down Nikita Parris when she was through on goal.
The Foxes, who are yet to notch a point since being promoted to the top flight, put in a stout defensive effort but Maanum came off the bench to score twice and put the game beyond doubt.
Arsenal, who stretched their unbeaten run to 18 in the league, top the table on 25 points, with Chelsea second on 21 points after nine games.
Tottenham climbed to third with a 2-1 win over Aston Villa, while Brighton managed to hang on to fourth spot on goal difference despite losing 2-0 at home to fifth-placed Manchester United.
Toni Duggan's first WSL goal in eight years for Everton gave the Toffees a 1-1 draw with West Ham, and Ellen White scored an 89th-minute winner for Manchester City as they beat second-from-bottom Birmingham 3-2.
Additional reporting by Reuters.
