Hannah Hampton sustained a quadriceps injury during Chelsea’s controversial 1–1 draw with Arsenal earlier this season and has not featured for the club since.
Bompastor revealed that Hampton could be sidelined for the remainder of the year. Still, there’s a possibility she could return against Wolfsburg midweek in the last game of the Champions League or/against Liverpool in the League Cup.
Bompastor’s cautious approach reflects Hampton’s importance to Chelsea and the need to manage her fitness carefully amid a congested fixture schedule and multiple competitions. This is not the first time Hampton has missed matches this season, having previously been sidelined for England’s 2–1 defeat to Brazil due to a minor elbow injury.
Tactical Impact and Distribution
Chelsea’s defensive structure has not changed significantly in Hampton’s absence. However, what separates her from other goalkeepers is her distribution and long passing.
Her ability to pick out forward players with precision on the counter allows Chelsea to move the ball quickly from one end of the pitch to the other, rather than being forced to filter play through midfield. These long balls and through passes are difficult to defend, forcing opposition defenders to retreat rapidly and reorganise.
Hampton’s long-pass accuracy and ability to play incisive through balls are primary tactical weapons that Chelsea loses when she is unavailable.
Core Goalkeeping Profile
Hannah Hampton brings a complete top-level goalkeeping skill set to Chelsea, including exceptional distribution with her feet, elite shot-stopping and a commanding presence in her penalty area.
Despite having a depth perception condition, strabismus, Hampton has developed outstanding positioning and game reading, enabling her to command her area effectively and make consistent, decisive saves.
Her athleticism and agility allow her to make game-changing interventions, including low saves and fingertip touches to push shots wide. These performances earned her a share of the 2024–25 WSL Golden Glove.
Hampton’s composure under pressure is one of her defining traits. She has repeatedly delivered in high-stakes moments, particularly in penalty shootouts for England, saving two penalties in the Euros final, one from three-time Ballon d’Or winner Aitana Bonmati, the other Champions League holder Mariona Caldentey. Those saves won them the Euros.
Her resilience underpins her career. Hampton defied medical advice suggesting she could not play professional sport, turning her eye condition into a strength through dedication, work ethic, and elite standards.
In 2025, Hampton became the first women’s goalkeeper to receive the Yashin Award at the Ballon d’Or ceremony. Her advocacy work in raising awareness of strabismus has also been recognised at Buckingham Palace. She is also nominated for the BBC Personality of the Year award.
She is widely regarded as a modern, reliable, elite number one for both Chelsea and England.
Results and Statistical Impact
Chelsea drew with Arsenal and Liverpool in the WSL, dropping more points. It was the first time since January 2022 that they had failed to win back-to-back league games. Chelsea were unbeaten in the WSL for 585 days before Hampton’s injury.
That run ended with a 1–0 defeat to Everton at Kingsmeadow, Chelsea’s first league loss in 34 matches. It was Everton’s first away win at Chelsea in the WSL in 12.5 years and the first time Chelsea had been beaten in the league since Liverpool on 5 May 2024.
Record comparison
With Hampton: 9 games, seven wins, five clean sheets
Without Hampton: 7 games, three wins, three clean sheets
Livia Peng had played only one game for Chelsea before being thrown into the deep end in a lacklustre 1–1 draw against FC Twente, a fixture Chelsea won 9–2 on aggregate over two legs last season. She is a young goalkeeper still developing, much like Hannah Hampton was when she first joined Chelsea.
Peng has produced several encouraging performances, most notably in the 1–1 draw against Barcelona at Stamford Bridge, the first time Chelsea has avoided defeat at home against the Spanish side. This came after heavy home losses in recent seasons, including a 4–1 defeat last year. She was also in goal for a 6–0 win over Roma and a 3–0 victory against Brighton.
Peng was the goalkeeper when Chelsea’s unbeaten run ended in the 1–0 defeat to Everton, although that result was not down to her performance. The decisive factor was Chelsea’s lack of execution and efficiency in front of goal rather than any defensive or goalkeeping errors.
England Implications and Positives
While Hampton’s absence is far from ideal, it has created a positive opportunity for England ahead of the Women’s World Cup qualifiers next year.
Sarina Wiegman has been forced to expand her goalkeeping options in friendlies, addressing a concern from the Euros, where Hampton was the only goalkeeper with a senior cap. This has allowed players such as Khiara Keating and Anna Moorhouse to gain valuable international experience.
Khiara Keating earned her first cap in the October camp when Hampton had a minor elbow injury during the 2-1 loss to Brazil.
Hampton had then recovered in time for the second match against Australia.
But before the November international, she was out with this quad injury. It was assumed Keating would play, as she had been chosen over Moorhouse the month before. But Keating picked up an injury before the China game, leading to a Wembley debut for Moorhouse. Moorhouse also played against Ghana, keeping clean sheets in both matches.
This increased depth provides greater assurance heading into World Cup qualification. So the only true positive to this injury is that it has given other players the chance to get some minutes, grow in confidence, and prepare better in case another injury happens to their number one keeper in Hampton.
Upcoming Fixtures and Stakes
Chelsea face Wolfsburg in the Champions League midweek. A win would secure automatic qualification for the quarter finals. Any other result would leave Chelsea reliant on other teams’ results. While Chelsea has already qualified for the next round, finishing outside the top four would mean entering the play-off round rather than progressing straight to the quarter-finals, as only the top four teams advance automatically.
Chelsea are currently third, but only a win guarantees automatic progression. Anything less would place their qualification route out of their control.
Avoiding two additional playoff matches is crucial as Chelsea aims to compete on all four fronts. With this being the final season in which the quadruple is possible, reducing fixture congestion is vital. Extra European fixtures would bring additional travel and physical load, increasing fatigue and injury risk. Automatic qualification would therefore offer a significant advantage in player recovery, performance levels, and squad management.
They also travel to Liverpool for the League Cup quarter-final on Sunday, 21st. This follows a controversial 1–1 WSL draw against Liverpool, a game Chelsea should have won, against a side still winless in the league and bottom of the table.
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