Chelsea Women 6-0 Leicester City Women
Chelsea Women prepared for Sunday's sold-out FA Cup final in the best way they could... with back-to-back whitewashes against bamboozled opponents.
In the space of three hectic days they defeated Everton 7-0, then Leicester 6-0, ahead of the eagerly awaited clash with Manchester United in front of a full house at Wembley, plus a worldwide television audience.
But manager Emma Hayes will be wary. United have had a week to rest and prepare, while the Blues have been forced to catch up on rearranged matches, testing the depth of the squad and leading to some very tired legs.
On Sunday, Everton were the visitors to Kingsmeadow, leaving with their tails between their legs after a 7-0 drubbing. Pernille Harder, now back to full match fitness after a five-month absence through injury, scored twice. But it was the fact that the other five goals were shared between Sam Kerr, Guro Reiten, Sophie Ingle, Jessie Fleming and Erin Cuthbert that most pleased the manager.
Then on Wednesday night, in driving rain, the Blues blasted six past Leicester City without reply, as Harder netted another brace. The other goals came from Reiten, Cuthbert, Jelena Cankovic and Lauren James.
Such a spread of scorers means United will have to be on their guard for multiple threats at Wembley as Hayes was able to rest Kerr, who ducked out of the Everton match after half an hour with cramp, possibly induced by having to manhandle the Australia flag at the coronation the day before!
In midweek, Hayes had the luxury of mass substitutions to spare her key players from injury. The scoreline against Leicester was 4-0 at half-time, thanks to dazzling play by Reiten, Cuthbert and Harder. When James made it 5-0 in the 56th minute, it was the cue to rest all four scorers before their cup final appointment.
But while the second half of the match seemed to be petering out, there was still time for Cankovic to net a sixth goal deep into stoppage time, to stake a claim for a place in the starting line-up against United.
"We moved the ball well," said Hayes afterwards, stressing how pleased she was by the start that her players made after being caught cold in the previous two games. "We're coming into form at the right end of the season, and we've got nearly a full squad to choose from. We like the rhythm of the game, and we're in a good place."
Ann-Katrin Berger played in goal in midweek, which might suggest Hayes will use the rested Zecira Musovic between the sticks at Wembley. Meanwhile Kadeisha Buchanan – a key defender in the absence of Millie Bright – came on as a sub in midweek after injury, broadening Hayes' options at the back.
The manager will opt for experience in the final, with the expert corner kicker and left back Eve Perisset likely to join Magda Eriksson and Jess Carter in defence, while Reiten, Kerr and Harder lead the line.
Remarkably, Leicester City have never scored against Chelsea in the Women's Super League, while the Blues have now notched 25 goals against the Foxes without reply in their four meetings.
So Chelsea go into the cup final on the back of a record-equalling 14-match home winning run, with the big game seeing the top two in the WSL going head-to-head, with only a single point now separating them as the business end of the season approaches.
The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and unless specifically stated are not necessarily those of Hammersmith & Fulham Council.
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