Read Suzanne Wrack’s match report right here:

That will be all from me today. Thank you for reading, congratulations to WSL leaders Arsenal on another fine win, and a very Merry Christmas to all of you. I can’t wait to see how this WSL season pans out post-festive season. Bye-bye for now.

Reports from the ground that Mead is out on the pitch, on crutches - certainly a good sign if she’s not been taken to hospital for what looked a serious problem.

Top of the league (for now ...)

Manchester City, with that 5-0 win against Brighton & Hove Albion, have moved second in the WSL table as it stands.

Leaders Arsenal now have 27 points, Man City now have 24 - but if Chelsea can find a way to win at Liverpool this afternoon then it’s the Blues that will be in second spot for Christmas.

89 min: Inside the final minute - and any hope of a dramatic Everton revival has surely been snuffed out at this stage.

87 min: Man City now winning 5-0. Liverpool Women 1-1 Chelsea Women at the moment. Meanwhile, here’s a live photo of this match, courtesy of Arsenal Women on Twitter:

85 min: Van de Donk and Miedema link on the edge of the penalty area for the Gunners but it’s all a bit too tricky and Everton belt the ball clear. The problem with Arsenal is, they try and walk the ball in the net, as the old saying goes. (This version of Arsenal really don’t, by the way.)

Kelly’s goal from a few minutes ago:

81 min: Everton make one final change, with Stringer coming off the bench for the final nine minutes. Can Everton pull off the impossible?

This is just one of many social media messages expressing the hope that Beth Mead’s injury is not too serious.

If you’re just joining us, Mead was taken off on a stretcher about 10 minutes before half-time, after a long spell of treatment following a challenge by Everton’s Gabby George. If I hear any news on her condition I will let you know ...

73 min: Arsenal’s Roord, who has been very lively, finds space for a right-footed shot from an angle and Korpela does well, again, to get down and save.

72 min: Kaagman fires in a corner for Everton as they search for a lifeline in this match. But no-one is there to meet it, and Arsenal can clear their lines. In truth the visitors have been superior in every facet of their play - composed in defence and constantly dangerous in attack.

68 min: Everton make a couple of changes: Boye-Hlorkah and Pike come on, Cain and Van Es go off. Can the fresh legs make a difference for the hosts?

67 min: As it stands, Arsenal have scored 26 goals in their past four matches in all competitions. Talk about a potent strike force.

64 min: Man City Women are also beating Brighton & Hove Albion 3-0 in today’s other 12.30pm kick-off. Elsewhere, Liverpool v Chelsea and Reading v Tottenham are getting under way right now.

63 min: Miedema shoots, Miedema scores.

60 min: Roord fires a shot over for Arsenal at one end, before Everton race down to the other end and Kaagman has a shot blocked. The game has opened up, and if it’s a 30-minute slug-fest from here on in, you have to fancy Arsenal to make the scoreline even more emphatic.

51 min: Roord does well to set up Van de Donk just inside the Everton penalty area - she cuts back on to her right foot, and cracks a low, goalbound shot to Korpela’s left. The Toffees goalkeeper does really well to get down and make a smart save.

50 min: A smart piece of defending by Turner for Everton eases the pressure once more. The opening minutes of the first half have been relatively even, compared to the siege-state which Everton found themselves in before the break.

48 min: Everton force a corner - their first of the match. It’s swung to the far post, where Finnigan meets the ball with a powerful header - but it flies harmlessly over the crossbar.

46 min: Arsenal start the second half as they ended the first, on the front foot. They attack down the right - but the ball squirts out for a goal-kick to Everton.

In the men’s game, Everton host Manchester United at 2pm today. You can read Daniel Harris’s minute-by-minute build-up here:

I will be back in a few minutes for the second half of Everton Women v Arsenal Women - see you soon.

52 min: Miedema now races on to a pass down the left-hand channel and swings a hopeful cross into space on the other side of the penalty area. It comes to nothing - and the referee’s whistle blows for half-time.

50 min: Arsenal centre-back Leah Williamson does well to head an Everton cross clear. The visitors have had far less defending to do, of the two teams, but Williamson has been impressive when called on so far.

48 min: Everton are penned in by some strong Arsenal pressing. Goalkeeper Korpela manages to clear first-time from down in the left-hand corner. Still around four or five minutes of stoppage time to come in this first half.

46 min: Roord and Miedema now try to link up on the edge of the Everton area, but they can’t quite get the ball down, and it’s cleared by the hosts’ defence once again. They have had a heavy workload in this first half and will surely tire as the second half wears on ...

44 min: A minimum of eight minutes of stoppage time coming up.

43 min: Unsurprisingly, the momentum Arsenal had built before Mead’s injury has largely disappeared. Van de Donk now finds some space on the left, though, and she tries to roll a pass into space for Miedema chase, but it’s overhit.

40 min: Everton win a free-kick in midfield and George fires an excellent delivery to the far post. Finnigan is there to meet it, too, but scuffs her effort straight at Gunners goalie Zinsberger, who makes a comfortable save.

38 min: The players get back down to business. We will have a long period of stoppage time at the end of this half, that is for sure. Everton attack and a promising position is wasted by an errant cross from the left.

36 min: Leonie Maier comes on for Mead. Mead is holding her head as she is carried off on a stretcher. Let’s hope that injury is not as serious as it looks - but it must be said, it looks like a bad one.

34 min: Unfortunately, a stretcher has been brought out on to the pitch, and it looks certain that Mead will play no further part in today’s match after that challenge by George. There is a lot of concern on the faces of the physios treating Mead, who is still stretched out on the turf after this lengthy delay. It looks like an injury to her right leg. Arsenal are preparing to make a change.

31 min: Beth Mead goes down heavily on the Arsenal right after a challenge from George - herself down injured moments ago. George is booked for her trouble, and Mead looks in a lot of pain as the physios come on to give her treatment.

29 min: Another dangerous Arsenal cross, this time from the right, and Van Es does well to flick out a heel and clear it, despite the ball being behind her. With 15 minutes of the first half now left, Everton are scrapping to stay in this match.

27 min: Everton are trying to press, but Arsenal suddenly seem to have an extra couple of seconds every time they are in possession. They are stretching their opponents’ defence all over the shop and it’s going to be a very long afternoon for the Toffees at this rate. Now they can have a breather - Gabby George has gone down injured and it’s a chance for manager Willie Kirk to have a word with his players on the touchline.

25 min: Very, very nearly goal No 2 for Arsenal. Miedema frees Mead on the left wth a perceptive pass, she scrambles to meet it, and sends another dangerous left-footed cross into the penalty area. Everton deal with it - just - and it’s still 1-0.

22 min: Wave after wave of Arsenal attacks are crashing down on the Everton goal. Roord smashes a right-footed shot just wide from outside the area. How long can Everton hold out? Can they cause any problems at the other end? They’re really struggling to get into this match since the first couple of minutes.

18 min: Miedema now finds herself out on the left wing, and fires in a low cross which is only half-cleared. Arsenal ping the ball around a little while on the edge of the Everton penalty area. The Gunners’ cutting edge in attack is really troubling Everton, as it has so many other teams so far this season.

17 min: Arsenal celebrate the opener on Twitter ...

16 min: Miedema with another chance, this time set up by team-mate Mead, but Korpela saves. Are Arsenal going to run up another cricket score here? Everton need to get a foothold in this match.

10 min: Arsenal are boxed in for a short spell by good pressing from Everton, and the passage of play ends with captain Graham hitting a powerful shot from just outside the area for the hosts. It’s blocked. Arsenal head down the other end and a loose ball breaks for Miedama, 10 yards out, who hits a side-footed shot too close to Korpela. It’s a good open game in the early stages.

7 min: Man City Women have just taken the lead away against Brighton & Hove Albion.

6 min: On the overlap, McCabe charges down the left for Arsenal, and whips a superb first-time cross into the danger area, across the six-yard box. No-one is on the end of it, but Arsenal are starting to move through the gears.

5 min: The visitors threaten again. A good long ball is sent over the top of Everton’s defence and Miedema chases on to it. But Korpela in the Everton goal does well to read it and comes off her line to intercept.

3 min: Now Arsenal attack for the first time. Miedema sets up attacking colleague Van de Donk for a close-range shot, which is deflected out for a corner. Arsenal try a short one but get it all wrong and Everton clear the danger.

1 min: Everton captain Lucy Graham loses the ball in midfield, then wins it back again immediately, and the hosts attack down the left. Arsenal clear the danger once, but the ball comes back, and Kaagman unleashes a left-footed shot from a central position which flies harmlessly over the crossbar. A promising start for Everton.

The teams are out. The handshakes have taken place. We are a couple of minutes from kick-off, in some of the last WSL action of the year. Everton are in the standard blue and white strips ... Arsenal are wearing yellow and blue. Let’s go!

Everton’s resident DJ is currently warming the crowd up with some Everton anthems. We are five minutes away from kick-off at Haig Avenue. Any pre-match predictions? Send them over on email or Twitter ...

Thanks to Arsenal Women’s Twitter, here’s a clip of Danielle van de Donk roofing a left-footed shot from a tight angle, the last time they visited Everton. Pick that one out:

There’s a symmetry to the current WSL table: Arsenal and Chelsea have both won five matches on the spin, while their closest challengers (Manchester City, Manchester United and Everton in that order) have all won three and lost two of their past five games. Arsenal are on 24 points ahead of today’s matches, with Chelsea two points behind and Man City a point further adrift. Man Utd and Everton both have 15 points.

You may already have spotted this story in the links atop the page, about Australia and New Zealand launching a joint bid for the 2023 Women’s World Cup.

Pre-match reading, part three:

If you have an insatiable appetite for pre-match reading, why not take a look at Suzanne Wrack’s interview with Chelsea’s Beth England?

Don’t forget! You can get in touch with me via the usual channels with any thoughts on today’s match - email or tweet in the direction of @LukeMcLaughlin.

To keep you entertained ahead of the 12.30pm kick-off, here’s a recent interview with the aforementioned Miedema, by Suzanne Wrack: