Chelsea have finally lost a WSL game under their manager, Sonia Bompastor. They have now set a new WSL record, unbeaten in 34 matches. Their 1-0 home loss to Everton was Chelsea's first goalless game under Bompastor. Chelsea were unbeaten for 585 days in the WSL.
While this game was Wieke Kaptein and Sandy Baltimore's first loss in the WSL.
For Everton, this is their first win away to Chelsea in the WSL in 12.5 years. Everton became the first side to defeat them in the Women's Super League since Liverpool on 5th May 2024.
Squad and Selection issues
Senior players like Millie Bright, Guro Reiten and Johanna Rytting Kaneryd are not performing at the same level as in previous seasons.
Erin Cuthbert's absence is due to a concussion sustained while with Scotland. Her absence was evident after their sluggish midfield play lacked quality, and they failed to make the most of their chances. This issue could be resolved. This big problem with players like Nusken and Wieke Kaptein should be used more, as they are very versatile.
Players like Aggie Beever-Jones, Keira Walsh and Ellie Carpenter have played a lot of minutes and may have been overworked, and sharpness has decreased during the winter break.
Match stats
- Everton beat Chelsea 1-0. Chelsea had seven shots on target—what went wrong and the impact on the title race.
- Shots: Chelsea 26, Everton 3.
- Shots on target: Chelsea 7, Everton 2.
- Chelsea had 30 shots on goal against Everton.
Match narrative
The Blues manager highlighted in recent months the issues her side has had with the final touch.
Honoka Hayashi struck for Everton in the 12th minute, a game Chelsea were expected to win or at least come back into.
Chelsea did have its own chances, hitting the post twice and the crossbar.
A lot of credit has to be given to Everton goalkeeper Courtney Brosnan, who made some excellent saves, including the Blues’ last-ditch attempt at the end of the goal to put it over the crossbar.
They have won the WSL in each of the past six seasons, but are now six points adrift of the league leaders after just 10 games.
The introduction of Sam Kerr from the bench, however, was the first thing to cause a significant improvement, breathing new life into an attack that had been somewhat stale.
They nearly equalised when a Sandy Baltimore corner bounced off an Everton player's back and hit the post and caused a goalmouth scramble, but the Toffees managed to recover.
Then, as the clock ticked down in added time, Chelsea thought they had managed to salvage a draw, but had the ball cleared off the line again and hit the woodwork once more when Wieke Kaptein headed an effort against the bar.
BOMPASTOR’S REACTION
'It’s a really frustrating result,' said Bompastor. 'It's tough, but I think if we analyse the performance and look at the statistics, I don't think the players could have done a lot more. Maybe we could have been more efficient again, more clinical.
'We created enough shots, crosses, and we hit the woodwork three times. It's just one of these games where the ball didn't want to go in, and it was tough.
'If you want to win games, you have to make sure you score goals. I think, again, if you look at our statistics, we are creating enough chances to win the games, but we are just not being efficient at finishing them. I think, for now, what we need to focus on is how we can get back to scoring goals.
'In the game tonight, we knew we had to be really switched on and focused on the transitions from Everton. I think they scored from one of these early on in the game, and then things changed after we were running after the result.'
For me, we were not focusing at all on the unbeaten run,' the boss explained. 'It was not one of our aims going into this new season. Our mindset was more like we started the new season from zero.
'We haven’t won anything yet. We want to compete in every competition. We want to win trophies. Going into every game, we know it will be tough. This league is competitive.'
Analysis of Everton
This is Everton's first win in eight games, and they owe it to their perfect defensive set-up.
They crowded the right areas to keep Chelsea out and never let their energy levels slip, marking closely throughout and maintaining the required intensity.
Even as Chelsea made use of their incredible bench depth, Everton remained resolute, maintained their shape, and made the right interceptions when needed.
Chelsea chalked up a mammoth 28 shots, 61 touches in Everton's box and 18 corners, but could not find an equaliser.
This is also a result that could have significant consequences for their season, potentially spelling the end of Chelsea's title hopes.
‘We’re not even at Christmas, and there's plenty more games to play,’ said Lucy Bronze. ‘Not just for City, but for (Manchester) United, for Arsenal. We've all got to play against each other, and they've all got to play against teams like Everton, who are looking to pick up points as well.
‘It's not just us. You saw yesterday that Liverpool almost took a point off Arsenal; it's just the way the league is. We wanted it to be more competitive – and we're happy to take on that challenge.’
‘It was just a few inches from really winning the game and even scoring a couple of goals. But I guess that's the league. We've come back from international break, probably not firing as fast as we could have in the beginning.’
While they had drawn twice in the league under manager Bompastor before Sunday's defeat, this is their first loss since being beaten 4-3 at Liverpool in May 2024.
Their failure to score brought to an end a run of 31 straight league games without scoring.
With Hannah Hampton: 9 games, seven wins, five clean sheets.
Without Hampton: 4 games, one win, one clean sheet.
"I think today is a game where we have to prove ourselves coming up against the champions. For us, we did that today," Everton defender Ruby Mace told the BBC.
"I'm so proud of my team and so proud of Everton... Sweat, blood and tears today. I couldn't be prouder of this team. We said at halftime, the only ones who will beat this team are the ones who put their body on the line."
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