Chelsea FCW 4-0 Tottenham FCW, WSL: Post-match reaction

Twenty-five minutes into the first half, it was difficult to tell which London side was on a run of 32 unbeaten league matches. Spurs started in the ascendency, pressuring the Blues into poor giveaways. Chelsea’s midfield looked in danger of being completely overrun. Then in the flash of two minutes, the Blues showed their lethal edge by scoring a pair of goals, effectively ending the match.

Melanie Leupolz broke the deadlock with a strike worthy of a German captain. She took on a shot with the outside of her boot from beyond the edge of the box. The swerving effort left the keeper rooted to her spot as the Blues found themselves ahead after being outplayed. A Spurs giveaway led to another goal almost immediately. Fran Kirby did well to break away down the right before expertly feeding Pernille Harder whose shot on target was deflected of a Spurs defender and into the net. Having started so well, only to find themselves down 2-0, Tottenham’s energy began to fade.

Chelsea would find a third before halftime to ensure the second half would be played in firm control. Sam Kerr nodded home a perfectly weighted cross from Harder to finish off an attacking break, her ninth goal of the season. With the match firmly in hand, Chelsea were able to play out the second half in comfortably fashion. They picked up a fourth goal after Spurs newcomer Abbie McManus was whistled for a hand ball in the box. Melanie Leupolz completed a brace, firing the resulting penalty into the opposite direction of the diving keeper.

• Starting XI: Berger; Andersson, Bright (Ingle ‘77), Eriksson, Mjelde (Blundell ‘46), Ji, Leupolz, Reiten, Harder (Spence ‘77), Kerr (England ‘61), Kirby (Fleming ‘61)
• Ann-Katrin Berger returned to the lineup and made a huge fingertip save early in the first half. She tipped a driven shot just off the post, keeping the Blues level during an opening twenty minutes they were heavily outplayed.
• Melanie Leupolz started the match looking a little off her best, after sitting out midweek. Like most of the team, she found her form, scoring two goals and controlling the Chelsea midfield.
• We nearly got a perfect end to the match with a goal from Drew Spence, but her driven effort rose just over the bar.
• Chelsea continue to put pressure on their league rivals to win every match. This side doesn’t look likely to give away any unexpected points this season.
• Next up: Chelsea take on West Ham in the Continental League Cup semifinal on Wednesday, February 3rd.
• KTBFFH!