Tag: Race

No pressure, Renee Slegers, but any hope of slowing down Chelsea in their pursuit of a sixth consecutive Women’s Super League (WSL) title rests squarely on your shoulders.

It’s only Matchday 12 of the 2024-25 season, yet it feels as though the race is already at a critical tipping point. The Blues have surged ahead, leaving the rest of the league trailing in their wake, and they now sit a commanding seven points clear of Arsenal in second.

If Arsenal lose to Chelsea on Sunday (7:30 a.m. ET. Stream live on ESPN+, U.S. only) that would stretch the gap to 10 points, and with just over half of the games played, that could prove insurmountable. Given Chelsea’s near-perfect form — they’ve dropped points only once in a 1-1 draw with Leicester City — the chances of them losing more than two games to give Arsenal a shot at closing the gap seem slim.

All eyes will be on Stamford Bridge, where the two powerhouses are set to clash in what promises to be a decisive moment. For Arsenal, the stakes couldn’t be higher. This match will decide the trajectory of their title challenge. For Chelsea, it could cement a potentially historic campaign.

Realistically, it can only be Arsenal

Manchester City‘s hopes of retaining a serious claim to the title have taken a heavy blow following their 4-2 defeat to Manchester United, leaving them two points behind their local rivals and Arsenal, both now tied on 24 points. With a mounting injury crisis further complicating matters, City now face the daunting task of hosting Arsenal on Feb. 2 — raising the stakes for the Gunners, who will be under pressure to extend their unbeaten streak.

Arsenal’s fortunes have been transformed since Slegers took charge in October following Jonas Eidevall’s resignation. In her interim spell, she led the team to an unbeaten run of 11 games across all competitions, and extended that to 12 with a commanding 5-0 victory over Crystal Palace in her first match as permanent manager. The momentum is certainly with Arsenal, but they’re not alone in the race.

While Arsenal remain the only team capable of realistically challenging Chelsea for the title, United are right in the mix, yet their inconsistency remains a serious concern. Despite being level with Arsenal, Marc Skinner’s side face a brutal end to the season, with tough fixtures against their closest rivals. While all other top three contenders face each other in the coming months — City host Chelsea on March 23 — United need to wait until the final stretch of the season.

United’s fate could be sealed by May, with matches against Chelsea, Man City and Arsenal all scheduled for their final run-in. Dropping points before those crucial games could be fatal to their title hopes, leaving them with no margin for error.

The Manchester clubs’ chances of closing the gap on Chelsea depend on Arsenal handing the Blues their first loss of the season, making the Gunners the only real team in a position to derail Chelsea’s momentum.

Arsenal’s defence can counter Chelsea’s attack

Arsenal’s struggles in recent visits to Chelsea are well-documented: they’ve failed to win any of their last five away WSL encounters, with their best result being a draw since their commanding 5-0 victory at Kingsmeadow in October 2018 under Joe Montemurro. It’s been nearly seven years since Arsenal last secured a win on Chelsea’s turf, but this time, the circumstances feel different.

“We are rivals, it’s a London derby. I think everyone involved, you can just feel it inside you,” Chelsea forward Guro Reiten told ESPN. “There’s something special about those games. It’s the games you love to win and hate to lose. And there’s been some crazy games between us the last few years. You never know what to expect.”

Both teams come into the match in good form. Chelsea remain unbeaten all season, while Arsenal have strung together that impressive 12-game unbeaten run of their own. Statistically, the Blues have dominated the offensive side, leading the league in goals scored (36), shots (220) and expected goals (25.3). Arsenal, however, have proven themselves a rock-solid defensive unit, ranking first for shots faced (81), expected goals against (6.7) and clean sheets (8). This clash is shaping up to be a true battle of dominance.

Arsenal defender Emily Fox has made it clear that Arsenal’s defensive game will be key if they hope to thwart Chelsea’s relentless attacking threats.

“Without a doubt, defensively, I need to be on top of it, whether it’s with my one-vs.-ones, or with set pieces, corners, crosses and second balls in the box,” she told ESPN. “So I think really just being on top of it.

“I feel like with Chelsea they can finish off of anything and kind of create something out of nothing. And so with that, just defensively being locked in all the time.”

Chelsea’s Reiten added: “We love playing Arsenal so it’s going to be a tough one. They have an unbelievable squad and have been very good recently, so it’s going to be challenging.”

She added that Bompastor has structured the squad to maintain focus on each upcoming match. “Every game is important though; you’ve got to prepare for every game the same. It doesn’t matter who you’re meeting,” Reiten told ESPN, emphasising that the team’s drive to win has been the key to their successful run.

“I’m not laughing or being funny [on the pitch], I want to win and I don’t care who is on that pitch. I want to win. I think every single one is like that.

“There’re going to be moments where you struggle, and you’re not playing as well as you want to, but you want to get it over the line. You need those three points and then we can work on how to improve the performance after. I think that’s been so special about us in the first half of the season; we’ve kept moving and kept moving.”

But the pressure is on Arsenal to deliver. To stand a chance of handing Chelsea their first loss of the season, they will need to be at their best, defensively and offensively. A win could be the catalyst to put real pressure on the Blues, perhaps even shaking their pursuit of a historic campaign and derailing their quest for an unbeaten season.

Girma will make Chelsea even stronger

The Blues are on track to smash the league’s points record following an impressive 31 points from a possible 33 at the season’s halfway mark. To equal the league’s record of 58 points, Chelsea will need to secure victories in nine of their remaining 11 games — no easy feat, but with their form this dominant, it’s well within their grasp.

Under former manager Emma Hayes, Chelsea went unbeaten throughout the 2017-18 WSL season, clinching the title in dominant fashion. Now, under new manager Sonia Bompastor, Chelsea have yet to taste defeat, not just in the WSL but across all competitions. It’s a remarkable streak for any team, especially in such a competitive league.

To put it in perspective, Arsenal’s historic unbeaten run in the 2006-07 season, when they achieved an unprecedented quadruple, stands as one of the finest accomplishments in domestic football. Playing 44 matches, they racked up 42 wins and two draws, a feat that now seems almost mythical.

For Bompastor to match or even surpass this achievement with Chelsea would be nothing short of extraordinary. It would require winning the elusive Champions League — a title Bompastor has already conquered both as a player and coach with Lyon. It’s the one prize that’s eluded Chelsea despite their domestic dominance. Add to that the League Cup and FA Cup, and the stakes couldn’t be higher.

While Chelsea did complete a domestic treble in 2021-22, recent seasons have seen them struggle to reap success in the league, in Europe and in the cups simultaneously.

The level of competition has soared since Arsenal’s 2007 triumph, when they won the inaugural Champions League (then called the UEFA Women’s Cup.) The game is now fully professional for these clubs, and the level of competition has skyrocketed. Going unbeaten in a league in the modern game is almost unheard of; doing it across four trophy campaigns is near impossible with the growth of the women’s game.

But Chelsea’s chances of a complete sweep may be slightly more plausible with the expected signing of Naomi Girma, the United States‘ premier defender, from San Diego Wave FC. ESPN first reported Chelsea’s interest in the 24-year-old last week, and the central defender is set to become the first $1 million signing in the coming days.

Girma is a rare talent, and her arrival at Chelsea is a game-changer. With her exceptional skill, being calm under pressure and natural leadership, she will seamlessly strengthen a defence already brimming with world-class talent. As Chelsea target the final stages of the four trophies they’re chasing, her presence adds a crucial layer of stability and quality. But her signature will come too late to feature on Sunday.

Arsenal must win this crucial clash — and then secure victory over Man City a week later — to keep the pressure on in the title race, but it will be Slegers’ biggest test yet. With Chelsea’s dominance showing no signs of slowing down, Arsenal’s ability to deliver in this defining moment could determine the course of the season.

If the Gunners fail to rise to the occasion, the question looms: is there anyone capable of stopping this ever-growing, near-impervious Chelsea?