Chelsea FC Women seem to have stayed true to themselves. Just like in recent years, they didn‘t manage to take all three points from the first game of the new WSL season. This time, they came up against a solid Liverpool side, by whom they were beaten 2-1. Here is an analysis of the opener against Liverpool from The CFCWSocial.
Fluid formation
With many new signings made over the summer, it was clear that this would lead to a switch in formation. Zećira Mušović started in goal, while Ann-Katrin Berger returned to the bench after successfully concluding her cancer treatment.
The arrival of world-class centre-back Kadeisha Buchanan meant the change to a back-three. Last season’s CB-pairing Millie Bright and Magda Eriksson each played as RCB and LCB, with Buchanan sitting in-between them. Emma Hayes, however, made the back-three a hybrid one. As Niamh Charles was used as a left wing-back against in the game, her versatility saw her roam up and down her side of the pitch. She would drop from the wing and make it a temporary back-four when the CBs pushed up.
Erin Cuthbert and Sophie Ingle dictated the tempo of the game from their central positions, while offensive-minded Lauren James started as a right-wing-back. Sam Kerr found herself up front as usual, but this time with a different striking partner. Guro Reiten acted as the second striker, with Fran Kirby as an offensive playmaker behind her.
Pernille Harder wasn’t able to start the game, due to a slight knock she suffered during warm-up. Thus, a last minute change of the game plan was necessary. This saw several players acting out of their natural positions. However, Hayes stuck with the fluid 3-4-1-2 system for the whole 90 minutes.
Stats
Penalties decided the game in favour of Liverpool, as both sides failed to score from open play. However, Chelsea dominated both halves of the match, which is highlighted by their 65% ball possession. The Blues had a passing accuracy of 84%, despite some players giving away the ball cheaply at times.
The passing map above shows that most of the game occurred in midfield. The hybrid back-three continuously pushed and moved higher up on the pitch, Chelsea’s formation stood solid. By doing this they closed down spaces for Liverpool attackers. In addition, the map showed that the build-up play at the back and centre ended up in the Blues moving the ball centrally. The majority of passes in the final third were aimed at Kerr, which resulted in the centre being the main channel for Chelsea’s attacks.
They had a solid start to the game, as Kirby converted a penalty in the third minute. However, Chelsea continued to manage eight shots, only three of which were on target. Despite their xG of 1.71 during the game, the penalty remained the only goal for the Blues. Meanwhile, Liverpool had the higher xG of 2.40, managing 6 shots, with two of them being on target.
The Reds interrupted Chelsea’s build-up play early and went into 1v1s in midfield to regain possession. At the same time, the London sides passes in the final third lacked accuracy. In addition, they were awarded four corners but failed to score from any of them. Normally, the Blues are more of a threat when it comes to set-pieces.
Movements
Chelsea’s style of play was mainly marked by fluidity. LWB Charles dropped in as LB from time to time. This made the back-three, consisting of three CBs, a temporary back-four. James did the same, changing her role as RWB to RB. Whenever one of the wingbacks switched to a fullback position, this allowed the other to push up higher on the pitch and act as a more offensive-minded winger.
In addition, a winger dropping to a fullback role allowed the CBs, namely Bright and Eriksson, to progress with the ball. They could carry it further on the field without leaving the backline exposed. However, the constant changes in positions seemed to take the dynamics out of the match. Chelsea were not clinical enough when passing the ball to the players in offence, who, when on the ball, didn’t convert their chances.
Reiten struggled with the role as left forward. Her runs, as well as offensive actions ended up being too wide. Kerr’s biggest chance of the game was flagged off-side in a questionable call from the lines woman. However, Kirby and James looked dangerous, lively, and brought their creativity to the pitch. The new signings, who came on in the 69th (Johanna Rytting Kaneryd for Reiten, Éve Perisset for Bright) and 80th (Cankovic for Ingle) minute of the game looked promising, but weren’t able to change the game for the better.
Conclusion
Chelsea missed Pernille Harder, who, if played at her preferred position as 10, understands how to find spaces and drop between the lines like no other. The last-minute changes on the game plan are no excuse for the underwhelming performances by the Blues, but they surely had their impact on the game. For the next game against Manchester City (25th September, 16:00 BTS), the back-line needs to work on their decision-making. Depending on the availability of players, they should be kept in their natural positions to allow more efficiency when executing the game plan.
Written By Alina Ruprecht (@alina_rxp)
Edited By A Bradley (@A_thensomething)