Lauren James and Ellie Carpenter both scored twice to steer Chelsea to a 6-2 victory over Tottenham and maintain pressure on Manchester City at the summit of the Women's Super League.

The performance delivered a powerful message from the hosts in a match filled with spectacular strikes following an opening period where Tottenham enjoyed more possession than Chelsea preferred.

James opened the scoring but Matilda Vinberg leveled before the interval, only for Carpenter to restore the advantage and James to add another. Sjoeke Nüsken and Maika Hamano then struck the fourth and fifth goals before Signe Gaupset replied and Carpenter converted again.

After Tottenham's 6-1 loss to London City Lionesses, manager Martin Ho expressed deep frustration with his side's showing despite entering unbeaten. Spurs appeared fragile against the visitors from Bromley.

At Stamford Bridge the mood lifted after an encouraging start from the away side, yet conceding first in the 25th minute highlighted ongoing defensive frailties. Toko Koga was dispossessed by James, who advanced and finished from a narrow angle.

Spurs maintained their positive approach and earned a deserved equalizer just before halftime as Vinberg headed in Julie Blakstad's precise delivery.

Any notion that Spurs might break their poor record against top opposition was swiftly dismissed after the break as Chelsea increased the tempo.

Sonia Bompastor's team regained the lead just before the hour when Alyssa Thompson cut the ball back for Carpenter to drive home from close range.

Four minutes later James collected possession from Lucy Bronze, beat Koga with a sharp turn and curled a fine finish beyond Lize Kop. Nüsken then entered and fired a rising shot for the fourth goal after a neat flick from Keira Walsh.

Hamano curled in a fifth from open space while Walsh's hesitation allowed Gaupset to pounce for Spurs' second. Carpenter completed her brace with a composed finish to end the contest on a high note for Chelsea, who remain genuine title contenders.