Brighton & Hove Albion WFC 0-1 Chelsea FCW, WSL: Post-match reaction

Chelsea FCW return from the south coast of England with three points in hand, though the hosts certainly made them work for it. Brighton started the match well, moving the ball quickly and crisply against the Blues high press. Chelsea showed patience in finding a breakthrough, and it came midway through the first half, courtesy of in-form Sam Kerr. Pernille Harder did well to dance into the box on the left side before floating a cross in to Kerr. Sam made no mistake, expertly directing her header into the far corner. The goal would prove to be the decider, as both sides were unable to make the most of further chances.

• Lineup: Berger, Mjelde, Bright, Eriksson, Andersson, Leupolz, Ji (Ingle 66’), Cuthbert (Reiten ‘66), Kirby, Harder (England ‘80), Kerr
• This isn’t exactly a groundbreaking opinion, but Pernille Harder is one talented footballer. She is silky smooth on the ball, often floating between defenders with the ball seemingly glued to her feet. In particular today, she showed off her passing touch, consistently playing in her fellow attackers with perfectly weighted through balls.
• Once again Chelsea play four attackers and once again, they find some difficulty controlling the midfield. Ji So-yun and Melanie Leupolz are fantastic players but are left with a lot to do. Erin Cuthbert helped the balance somewhat by dropping deeper on occasion to provide linkup play.
• For a team with only two league victories, Brighton put in an impressive performance. They worked tirelessly throughout the match and Chelsea never really looked comfortable. If they can put in more performance like today, the Seagulls will be a difficult side to beat.
• Chelsea nearly scored several wonderful team goals today, only to be let down by a finish. In particular, Fran Kirby and Frank Kerr continue to read each other very well.
• It may not have been the dominating display Chelsea are so accustomed to in the WSL, but they did what good teams do; they gritted out a victory on a day they weren’t at peak performance.
• The Blues return to action at Kingsmeadow on Wednesday, as they look to finish off S.L. Benfica in the Champions League, after winning the away leg 5-0.
• KTBFFH!