“Vive la Révolution,” read the new banner amid faded neighbours behind the Chelsea goal in the first half, with a picture of Sonia Bompastor looking to the sky beneath the words. The Chelsea manager’s reign began with a 1-0 win against an Aston Villa side who likewise had someone new at the helm and top six ambitions. Johanna Rytting Kaneryd’s first-half goal was the difference between the sides.
Bompastor had said time and again in pre-season that she wants her Chelsea side “to be a dominant team”. They delivered in the summer, but would it translate to competitive play? Would the transition from Emma Hayes, in charge for 12 years, to the French winner of the Champions League (as a player and as a manager) affect their fluidity and dominance? If the Women’s Super League opener in front of a sold-out crowd of 4,337 is treated as the litmus test for whether Chelsea are at a disadvantage by being in a transition year, then the 11 other top-flight sides should be concerned.
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Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/football/2024/sep/20/chelsea-aston-villa-wsl-match-report
Author : Suzanne Wrack at Kingsmeadow
Publish date : 2024-09-20 20:07:31
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