Chelsea LFC draw favorable quarterfinal opponents in both Champions League and WSL Cup

Chelsea Ladies continue to compete across three fronts, going strong in the league (WSL 1), the league cup (WSL Cup), and the Women’s Champions League (UWCL) — with a fourth, the FA Women’s Cup set to begin in February — having advanced to the quarterfinals in both the WSL Cup and the UWCL and making a strong title challenge in the league against rivals Manchester City.

The quarterfinal draws for both the WSL Cup and the UWCL were made recently, with the Ladies receiving favorable opponents in both.

In the former, just ten days from now, Chelsea will take on Liverpool LFC. The Reds are fourth in the league, but it could have been worse. Liverpool have two losses in their last four league matches, including a 1-0 defeat by Chelsea, and they also saw out the WSL Cup group stage with a loss to Sunderland. Chelsea avoiding Manchester City and Arsenal until a potential later round is certainly not a bad thing either. This game is set to take place on December 17 at Chelsea’s home stadium of Kingsmeadow.

In the latter, when that competition resumes in late March, the Blues will travel to Montpellier for the first of two quarterfinal legs — it’s Chelsea’s first time this far in the Women’s Champions League while Montpellier once made it as far as the semifinals in 2006. They also made it this far the last time they participated in the UWCL before missing out on the competition altogether last season thanks to a third-place finish.

As with the Liverpool draw, it could’ve been worse for Chelsea. There aren’t really any easy draws at this stage of the Women’s Champions League, and by that measure the French side is one of the easier prospects, at least on paper. Regardless, the talent in France is undeniable, and Liverpool are no slouches at the end of the day either.

Should make for a splendid set of matches, good-viewing for all fans, and hopefully positive outcomes for the Blues, as they look to continue making history.