The WSL leaders came out on top in their four-game series with Nick Cushing's side and still have three trophies in their sights
On Sunday, Manchester City and Chelsea will both do something they haven't done in any of their last four games. They'll walk out for a fixture that doesn't involve playing against one another. Thursday's Women's Champions League second leg was the final match in a four-game series between the two, which began with the League Cup final on March 15 and spanned across three competitions, before coming to its conclusion via the Blues’ qualification for a European semi-final in midweek.
It’s been a testing couple of weeks for both teams, for a lot of different reasons. Each have been hit by notable injuries, the kind of which have hurt City’s thinner squad more. Sonia Bompastor, the Chelsea boss, went out of her way to note that on Thursday. “Maybe it was something that went more in our side, because they didn't have all their squad,” she graciously conceded, in the same press conference which saw her describe the depth of her squad as “really important”.
In the end, it was Chelsea who came out on top across this tetralogy, despite losing their unbeaten record in the second of their four meetings with City. In Manchester, a 2-0 win for the hosts was sandwiched between victories for the Blues in the League Cup final and the Women’s Super League, the latter of which Bompastor’s team are in pole position to win. However, that was just the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final, and Chelsea ruthlessly turned things around at Stamford Bridge on Thursday, going 3-0 up before half time.
Try as they might, City couldn’t get going in west London. Hannah Hampton, the Chelsea goalkeeper, was forced into several smart saves, but never from sustained pressure. Instead, the Blues dominated and deservedly progressed to the semi-finals, where they will face a Barcelona side that has eliminated them at this stage in each of the past two years.
Could this season be different? There are some signs to suggest as much, though Barca’s own 10-2 aggregate quarter-final win over two-time European champions Wolfsburg was a statement. “It will be a tough challenge,” Bompastor said. “But, in football, everything is possible.”
And what now for City? They lost that League Cup final, are out of the Champions League and sit some seven points adrift of the European places in the WSL, with only five games to go. There is still the FA Cup, which they are in the semi-finals of, but it has been a rough few weeks.
GOAL breaks down the winners & losers from Stamford Bridge…
Getty ImagesWINNER: Quadruple talk
In England, people love to talk about the quadruple. It's an extremely rare feat to achieve, with Arsenal the only English women's side to tick all four boxes way back in 2007, when they won the league, both domestic cups and the UEFA Women's Cup, now the Women's Champions League. However, Chelsea not only remain in the mix to become just the second English women's side to triumph on the continent – they also have the potential to still collect all four pieces of silverware.
Victory over City in the League Cup final earlier this month ensured that talk didn't fall at the first hurdle, and this remarkable comeback on Thursday allowed the Blues to clear the second fence. Sonia Bompastor won't be drawn on such a dream, just taking each game at a time, but the hopes are still there for Chelsea fans as they ponder something which would be quite incredible.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesLOSER: Man City & Nick Cushing
Man City made a huge call when they opted to replace Gareth Taylor with Nick Cushing ahead of this four-game series with Chelsea. In the end, it absolutely did not pay off.
City lost the League Cup final 13 days ago, were defeated in the crucial WSL meeting between the two at the weekend and then, after actually coming through as 2-0 winners in the first leg of this Champions League tie, even that victory was rendered meaningless thanks to this 3-0 loss.
It was a big risk to make a managerial change when they did. City hoped it could help secure some better results to improve a season that was in danger of disaster. But instead, it changed very little.
Getty ImagesWINNER: Lauren James
It's not been an easy season so far for Lauren James. Three months on the sidelines was far from ideal for the England winger, forcing her to miss all but one of Chelsea's Champions League group games. However, she's come back with a bang in this New Year and has been playing some wonderful football since her return. Thursday was another example of that. No one created more chances in the second leg than James, whose running caused City all sorts of problems.
As Chelsea prepare for the games to get bigger and bigger in the next few weeks, they'll be delighted that James is showing some wonderful form on a regular basis. She could well be the difference as they target that elusive Champions League title.
Getty ImagesLOSER: Vivianne Miedema
In the first leg, Vivianne Miedema was absolutely world-class. Her remarkable composure in front of goal was what gave City their two-goal advantage and a huge chance to make the semi-finals of this competition. Unfortunately, though, those efforts were in vain.
The same goes for the work she did on Thursday, too. On several occasions, this remarkably talented striker popped up with huge defensive moments, most notably clearing a Nathalie Bjorn header off the line. Yet, it was Chelsea who prevailed in the tie.
There were several players who turned up in a big way for City over the course of these two legs, despite the result. Miedema was certainly one of them and for a player of her incredible quality to still be yet to play in a Champions League semi-final in her career feels unjust.
