Shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride said the government "must not delay" in taking decisive steps to release the funds, arguing that the money should already have been deployed to support humanitarian efforts linked to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. He warned that, more than two years after the sale, the continued freeze was becoming increasingly difficult to justify given the scale of need on the ground.
A mistake led to James opening the scoring against her former club in a frantic first half which saw both sides have plenty of chances. United looked good value for an equaliser, but Chelsea were clinical and that proved to be the difference when Beever-Jones sealed the win with a close-range finish 14 minutes from time.
