Leaders Chelsea moved nine points clear at the top of the Women’s Super League as Guro Reiten’s 84th-minute penalty handed them a 1-0 victory over Arsenal at Stamford Bridge.

A scrappy encounter looked to be drifting towards a stalemate when two substitutes turned the tide for Sonia Bompastor’s side in a dramatic finale.

Lauren James, having been sent on in the 57th minute to try and breathe life into a flat display, did exactly that when, having burst past Mariona Caldentey, she cut inside and was tripped by a desperate tackle from Kim Little.

In the aftermath Arsenal’s Katie McCabe was shown a second yellow card, seemingly for dissent. Once Reiten had converted the resulting spot-kick from 12 yards, it left the visitors facing a challenge they were unable to scale.

For McCabe, there may be more consequences to come after she kicked the tunnel on her way off the pitch, a hugely-frustrating end to a game that Renee Slegers’ side had probably edged.

Chelsea paraded world-record signing Naomi Girma on the pitch ahead of kick-off – the defender joining for a reported £900,000 from San Diego Wave – but Bompastor could be forgiven for having had attacking reinforcements in mind after a performance that, prior to an explosive finish, they had rarely looked like winning.

Indeed it was difficult at times to believe that this was the WSL’s highest-scoring side by some distance, so little did they trouble what before kick-off had been the division’s meanest defence.

Chelsea almost gifted Arsenal the lead midway through the first half. Erin Cuthbert, on her 251st appearance, played a careless ball directly into the path of Alessia Russo, who ran around the outside of Millie Bright before dragging her shot wide of the far post.

Niamh Charles deflected Beth Mead’s close-range effort into the side-netting after Bright had inadvertently helped the ball into the path of the Arsenal striker, the closest either side came to scoring in the opening 30 minutes.

A fine link-up between Kyra Cooney-Cross and Caldentey released full-back Emily Fox, who had sprinted forward but her low shot was palmed away low to her right by Hannah Hampton.

Arsenal goalkeeper Daphne Van Domselaar produced a wonderful reaction save to keep out Catarina Macario from six yards, while at the other end, Mead sent an effort curling inches wide of Hampton’s far post.

The second half was for the most part a tense, stolid affair that lacked quality and chances.

The game became stuck in midfield and it was not until the 74th minute, when Caldentey had a shot blocked then substitute Frida Maanum fired over the crossbar on the follow-up, that either side came close to scoring.

Then when it looked like the game was destined to end goalless, James intervened, running at Little and drawing the foul that led to the penalty and a red card for McCabe.

Reiten stepped up to score and place one blue hand on the WSL trophy.