It feels odd to say a team who have been unbeaten since losing against Barcelona in April needed a confidence boost. Chelsea’s dominant 4-0 victory over Paris FC in the women’s Champions League on Wednesday night should have felt routine. But a string of subpar results (by Chelsea’s high standards) meant it was a pressure release, and an important step in their search for a first Champions League title. After drawing 1-1 with Manchester United at the beginning of the month, dropping points for t
After drawing 1-1 with Manchester United at the beginning of the month, dropping points for the first time in the Women’s Super League (WSL) this season, Chelsea needed a penalty to equalise and finish with the same result away against FC Twente of the Vrouwen Eredivisie. They then won 1-0 against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, but their struggles to break the deadlock until late on, despite dominating throughout, were frustrating.
“(Against Twente), I think we were dominant, we controlled the game,” head coach Sonia Bompastor said last Friday. “We just need to show more desire. The desire to go with intent in the box, the desire to be the first contact in the box, the desire to score goals.
“In our game model, the mentality is the foundation, the base, and I think we need to go back to that.”
Returning to the basics paid off. Wednesday’s win was a more typical Chelsea: dominant, displaying their depth, growing in confidence as the match progressed, with Alyssa Thompson’s starring role acting as a reward for squad investment.
The implications of finding form are significant. Chelsea have made no secret of their ambition to finally win the Champions League this season. In the new league format, picking up ‘easier’ points and beefing up goal difference before tougher ties with Barcelona and Wolfsburg is crucial.
The desire was evident from the off, but without the finishing to match. Sandy Baltimore beat opponent Maelle Garbino to almost every loose ball, presenting a constant threat on the left. Thompson’s technique and pace lived up to the hype when the club-record signing was presented to fans on the WSL opening day last month. Paris FC offered little in return, and when they did get on the ball, Chelsea’s press was intense and incessant.
However, Bompastor’s side did little at first to shake worries about their wastefulness in front of goal. Aggie Beever-Jones fluffed her lines on multiple chances, failing to connect with a through ball from Keira Walsh and only weakly meeting a cutback from Sjoeke Nusken.
It took a generous penalty decision, given after a VAR check saw contact by Anaele Le Moguedec on Nusken’s ankle, for Chelsea to find a breakthrough. Bompastor’s lack of reaction was telling — as referee Michalina Diakow pointed to the spot, the head coach barely looked up from her fervent conversation with Erin Cuthbert on the touchline. She celebrated Baltimore’s conversation with as much fervour as one might applaud a smart pass or tackle: impressive, promising, but not decisive.
Chelsea did not want to just win 1-0. They wanted not only a victory, but a statement.
Thompson provided the spark. Her work on the left had already produced superb crosses, with one drawing a point-blank save to stop Paris FC’s Thea Greboval turning the ball into her own net. In the 39th minute, Johanna Rytting Kaneryd powerfully headed home from another excellent Thompson run and cross. The U.S. women’s national team forward picked up where she left off after the break, slotting home Walsh’s pass at the back post. It was her first Champions League goal and first Chelsea goal, scored days before she joins Emma Hayes and the USWNT for the upcoming international window.
For Thompson to star with a goal and assist in the Champions League — the one trophy missing from Chelsea’s cabinet — shows how she is already providing a return on their club-record investment of £1million ($1.3m).
“She brings a lot of speed up front,” Bompastor said after the game. “She also is a player who is really comfortable on the ball. She takes risks. She attacks the defender one-v-one, she’s able to come inside, outside. So for the defender, it’s really difficult to defend against her.”
“I think we haven’t seen yet, for myself, the best of her. But hopefully we’ll see that soon.”
A three-goal lead and a starring role for the marquee signing would probably sound like enough to most. But this is Chelsea, and so Bompastor flexed her muscles with a complete refresh of the forward line, replacing Thompson, Beever-Jones, and Rytting Kaneryd with Guro Reiten, Sam Kerr, and Maika Hamano on 55 minutes.
Less than 10 minutes later, the score was four. After a scramble from Baltimore’s corner kick, Kerr’s header at the back post wormed through a thicket of defenders, and Cuthbert had the final touch.
Four unanswered goals, four scorers, and it could have been far more; Reiten hit the bar with 15 minutes left, and Kerr sent another close-range shot over. In the past few games, Chelsea’s spurned opportunities have caused regret. This time, there was no need to worry.
Paris FC are far from the strongest opponent Chelsea will face. They meet Barcelona and Wolfsburg before the end of the year in the league phase, and in-form OL Lyonnes could be waiting further down the line. Chelsea cannot afford to waste so many opportunities in those games, and their defence will be tested much more. But this return to their typical display of depth and dominance, perfectly timed to head into the international break on a positive note, was just what they needed.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
Chelsea, Champions League, Women's Soccer
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Category: General Sports
