Chelsea see out Celtic to advance to Women’s Champions League knockouts

Chelsea Women’s 3-0 win over Celtic Women in the UEFA Women’s Champions League (UWCL) may have been a foregone conclusion, but they were made to work for it.

Sonia Bompastor’s side needed two crafty short corner routines and a late penalty to break down Celtic’s resolute defence.

Helped by FC Twente Vrouwen’s 3-2 defeat to Real Madrid Femenino, Chelsea booked their spot in the quarter-finals of a tournament they have not won; coming closest in 2021 but losing 4-0 to FC Barcelona Femení in the final.

Celtic formed their women’s team only in 2007 and are making their UWCL group stage bow after progressing past the earlier rounds.

Yet they stood up to the task on a night where many expected the scoreline to look uglier against a vastly-experienced Chelsea team.

After first-half goals from Lucy Bronze and Wieke Kaptein, the reigning Women’s Super League champions were largely kept quiet in the second period bar Ève Périsset’s penalty.

Bompastor, who won the UWCL with Olympique Lyonnais Féminin during the 2021/22 season, continued her 100 per cent start since replacing predecessor Emma Hayes last summer.

The Frenchwoman is now only one victory away from equalling Hayes’ record of 12 consecutive wins in all competitions, set between March and May 2022.

When Bompastor took charge, she was faced with the unenviable task of continuing Hayes’ legacy.

Not only had Hayes won 16 trophies across a 12-year spell, but she is also widely recognised as the woman responsible for transforming the club’s culture.

Yet, much like Arne Slot has seamlessly stepped into Jurgen Klopp’s hotseat, Bompastor’s success can be attributed her attention to detail.

Even after last weekend’s 2-0 win over title rivals Manchester City, Bompastor said her players lacked confidence on the ball.

Four days later, it looked like that was addressed from kick-off as Chelsea started with intent.

After a first-minute short corner routine, Bronze fired the home side ahead with an acrobatic half volley. Catarina Macario, handed her first start of the season, supplied the assist with a sumptuous cross.

Twenty-three minutes later, Kaptein doubled the advantage with a header from another short corner.

Bompastor credited the goals to work on the training ground.

She said: “I think it’s really important to work on the small details, and I think set pieces are one of them. This is something we have been working on, and it worked tonight.

“It’s always an opportunity to show we can be unpredictable, being able to play in the game, but also on set pieces.”

But entering the second-half, while Chelsea continued to dominate the ball with 70 per cent possession, they failed to fashion any dangerous openings despite peppering Kelsey Daugherty’s goal with 25 shots; only seven of which hit the target.

There was time in the 85th minute for Bompastor to bring on 17-year-old Lola Brown for her professional debut, drawing loud cheers from the 3,931-strong home crowd.

About Brown, Bompastor said: “It’s a special week for her individually, but also for the club. I can see her talent. She’s really dynamic, really smart, really good with the ball.

“She will progress and I think this experience tonight will bring her a lot of joy and confidence.”

Chelsea were awarded a last-minute penalty after Celtic’s Shannon McGregor handled Bronze’s cross, which substitute Périsset dispatched for her first-ever club goal.

Defeat for Celtic meant they exited the UWCL, but manager Elena Sadiku said she was proud of her players.

Sadiku added: “For me, the competition is something that we can learn so much from, because I have a strong team with a lot of quality.

“You’ve seen how good they’ve been against the top players. The style of football that we played against a top team like Chelsea, how we broke the press, how calm we were with the ball and defending.

“I’m really excited for what we have in front of us. We’re going to make sure that Celtic is going to be a team that people knows about in the women’s football.”

While Bompastor fielded a relatively strong squad, the likes of Nathalie Bjorn, Sandy Baltimore and Maika Hamano were kept on the bench with one eye on Sunday’s league game against Manchester United.

“It’s been my mindset from the beginning of the season. We play so many games, and we need to make sure everyone is involved,” added Bompastor.

“Tonight, not everything was perfect but in terms of results we are in a good place and that brings a lot of confidence.”