Sonia Bompastor's side were supposed to be in a transitional season after Emma Hayes departure – and yet they claimed a sixth-successive league title
It was slightly amusing that in the minutes that followed Chelsea's sixth-successive Women's Super League title triumph on Wednesday, head coach Sonia Bompastor talked about the celebrations feeling somewhat "unreal" as she and her players were not expecting to have the opportunity to get the job done at Manchester United this week. Indeed, it was a surprise that such a chance arose, owing to Aston Villa's shock 5-2 win over Arsenal earlier in the evening. However, it was fitting that it did and that Chelsea were able to seal the earliest WSL success in competition history, as such an outcome has felt inevitable for months now.
That match-winner Lucy Bronze talked boldly about wanting to end the season unbeaten spoke more to the domestic dominance that the Blues have enjoyed in Bompastor's first season in charge. Avoid defeat in their final two league outings, at home to a struggling Tottenham side on Sunday and then away at Liverpool on the final weekend, and Chelsea will become the first team in the WSL's 22-game era to go an entire campaign without a loss. "Although we won the league tonight, we know we've still got two games," the Lionesses star told . "We want to win those games. We want to be unbeaten all season."
If the Blues do achieve that, it would certainly be well-deserved. After all, while games like Wednesday's tight 1-0 win over United showed that there are sides in England that can really go toe-to-toe with them on the day, the fact remains that Chelsea are head and shoulders above the rest when it comes to consistency over an entire season. With their sixth WSL title in a row, and under another manager now after Emma Hayes' departure, the Blues are hitting new levels in their domestic dynasty – and it's hard to see just who is capable of tearing it down.
Getty ImagesAs dominant as ever
This was supposed to be Chelsea’s ‘transition’ season. Moving from the Hayes era to that of Bompastor while bidding farewell to several key first-team players, such as Fran Kirby, Jess Carter and Ann-Katrin Berger, this was supposed to be the season in which their WSL title was at its most vulnerable.
With all the talk about how Bompastor, a Champions League winner as a player and a manger, could help Chelsea get over the line in Europe, it felt like that could take up more of the focus even, perhaps, when it got to the business end of the season.
But in the end, all that talk was wildly misplaced, with the Blues able to wrap up their sixth-straight WSL title with remarkable comfort.
AdvertisementGettyTitle-winning squad
Why were they able to do so? The strength of their squad is a big reason. Bompastor has spoken time and again about the importance of depth this season, the kind of which is so much greater than all of their domestic rivals.
It’s allowed Chelsea’s team to stay fresh throughout a demanding campaign which has also seen them win the League Cup, reach the Champions League semi-finals and the FA Cup final, adding plenty to their calendar.
That has been amid a number of injuries, too. Sam Kerr, Sophie Ingle, Kadeisha Buchanan and Mia Fishel have all missed either the entire season or most of it because of ACL setbacks, leaving the Blues without key players down the spine of the team. Then, the likes of Naomi Girma, Niamh Charles, Maelys Mpome, Erin Cuthbert, Guro Reiten, Lauren James and Sandy Baltimore have all had spells on the sidelines this term, with Chelsea often thin at centre-back in particular.
That they have battled through those obstacles is not just a nod to the depth of the squad, but the talent and character of those who have stepped up when needed.
Getty ImagesAble to absorb obstacles
Sometimes it does feel like the Blues’ big squad and significant investment is used as a stick to beat them with. Rival fans might say that they win the title with the depth they have – but that is to overlook the fact that the club has invested brilliantly to be in a position that is so superior to the rest of the English women’s game, at least when it comes to being the best team over a 22-game season.
For example, when Chelsea took on Manchester City four times in a two-week period in March, in the League Cup final, a two-legged Champions League quarter-final and in the WSL, there was a lot of attention on City’s absentees. For some fans of the Blues, that was frustrating, given their own long injury list wasn’t really being talked about.
But that’s because City’s issues were so crippling – so much so that Bompastor even brought them up, unprompted, after knocking Nick Cushing's side out of Europe. “I just want to mention that I think City did very well in these four games against us,” she said after the Blues’ 3-0 win at Stamford Bridge in March. “I just have a small thought about them because I know they had some injuries, and maybe it was something that went more in our side because they didn't have all their squad.”
Getty ImagesWeakness for others
Getting up to Chelsea’s level of squad depth is the challenge for City now, as it is for Arsenal and for Manchester United. It’s not something that is easy to do quickly, either. This is what the Blues have been building towards for over a decade, through growing investment and commitment from the club.
"If you look at Chelsea, they've been able to build a squad over the last five, six, seven years, through the successes they've had,” Gareth Taylor, the City head coach until his sacking in March, said when asked about that lack of depth within his side. “When you win the league, it gives you that two months then to be able to invest, knowing that [you're] going to be playing in the Champions League [group stage] and in multiple competitions, while the other two teams who qualify for the Champions League [qualifying rounds], there's no guarantee you're going to be in that competition. By the time you have qualified for [the group stage], the transfer window has closed. You're hedging your bets a little bit."
Former Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall, meanwhile, caught the eye with what he said in an interview with back in January, including his comments on the departure of star forward Vivianne Miedema to City last summer. When explaining that unpopular move, he said: “In this case it was a very simple factor. You have a limited budget to work with and we had the option to sign Mariona Caldentey or extend Vivianne Miedema's contract, then you have to choose either or. But it's not a decision that you then stand at a press conference and say, ‘We needed to choose between two players’. The reality is that we couldn't afford both. Then I have to make a decision about what I think is best for the club.”