Arsenal thrashed north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur 5-0 on Saturday to boost their slim Women's Super League title hopes, in a game where Chloe Kelly made her return and Alessia Russo shone.

The hosts were quick to find cracks in Spurs' defense at the Emirates Stadium and went 1-0 up in the 14th minute after a Kyra Cooney-Cross cross found Russo, who got a slight touch before Clare Hunt turned into her own net.

Mariona Caldentey then found the bottom corner in the 35th minute from 14 yards out despite Spurs goalkeeper Lize Kop's best efforts.

Tottenham's defensive woes were clear to see and they persisted into the second half, and six minutes after the restart Frida Maanum's deflected effort from the edge of the area ended in the back of the net.

The visitors then left themselves open chasing the game, with Caitlin Foord having plenty of space to run into on a counter in the 58th minute before assisting Russo, who made no mistake from the right-side of the box and capped her player of the match performance.

Just as Spurs thought it couldn't get any worse, Arsenal defender Emily Fox netted her first WSL goal with a stellar shot from 25 yards out.

On-loan Kelly, making her first appearance for Arsenal in 2,815 days, nearly topped off a perfect day for Arsenal but hit the crossbar.

The win means Arsenal are eight points off WSL leaders Chelsea in third, while Spurs sit sixth with 17 points.