After Barcelona’s 4-1 routing of Chelsea in the first leg of the women’s Champions League semifinal on April 20, midfielder Keira Walsh and defender Lucy Bronze were quick to reference Chelsea’s most recent comeback in the tournament — a remarkable 3-0 home win against Manchester City in the quarterfinals in March following a 2-0 first-leg defeat. The dimming flame of possibility is still alight.
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Walsh and Bronze joined Chelsea this season after winning two Champions League titles with Barcelona, giving them unique perspectives. They, more than most, know it can be done because they’ve been here before and won, upending the Champions League dreams of the very team they now represent just a year ago at the semifinal stage.
If any team can hold off Barcelona, who have an insatiable appetite for a counterattack, while also scoring at least three goals, it’s Chelsea. And if any team can withstand the might of an English powerhouse on the hunt for a quadruple, a team no doubt powered by the energy of a Stamford Bridge crowd on Sunday, it’s Barcelona.
They’ve crushed blue dreams before, but by Barcelona’s standards, this could be considered their most vulnerable season in recent years. Second-leg tournament football is a special kind of no-holds-barred chaos, but Chelsea will need to harness more than that to reach their second Champions League final. They will need to believe beyond what is rational, given the steep hill they have to climb.
Chelsea’s squad has benefited from a deep bench but they have been relatively thin lately on the personnel front. The absence of Lauren James’ custodial creativity and defensive pressure off the ball was glaring in Chelsea’s away leg. Even when Chelsea had possession, they struggled to produce attacking threats through midfield, often relying on long balls sent over the top of Barcelona’s defense to Mayra Ramirez, who was routinely squeezed out or shut down by the back-line pairing of Mapi Leon and Irene Paredes.
Aitana Bonmati surges past Mayra Ramirez in the first leg (Ruben De La Rosa/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
The same could be said of Maika Hamano, who withdrew from international duty with Japan at the same time James did from England. Hamano’s ability to carve her way out of pressure and deliver pinpoint balls into the box has been key for Chelsea this season and could offer a fresh option in the second leg if she plays.
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In defense, the inclusion of a certain $1.1 million center back signing feels not only imminent but necessary against Barcelona on Sunday. Naomi Girma has played just over 100 minutes for the team across three matches but has a wealth of experience in big games. Chelsea has no choice but to heave all of its offensive will against Barcelona as soon as possible, which will inevitably leave the defenders vulnerable if possession is lost. It was difficult to assess Girma’s contributions in the first leg as she came on in the 81st minute to replace an injured Nathalie Björn, but her read of the game will be crucial if — or, perhaps more realistically, when — Barca counters.
In the wake of a crushing first-leg loss, Chelsea were handed a lifeline: a league match against Crystal Palace on Wednesday. Palace, sitting at the bottom of the Women’s Super League (WSL) table, were the perfect confidence-boosting shakeout as Chelsea won 4-0. Goals from Guro Reiten, a double from Catarina Macario, and Mia Fishel’s first since her return from an anterior cruciate ligament injury provided a welcome balm and allowed Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor to rotate the roster and manage the minutes of Girma, Millie Bright, Bronze, and Sandy Baltimore, the fluid winger who scored Chelsea’s only goal against Barcelona and opened the scoring crusade against City in the second leg of the quarterfinals.
With a fresher squad, Chelsea can take some belief to Stamford Bridge.
(Top photo: Joan Valls/Urbanandsport/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
This news was originally published on this post .
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