As Stina Blackstenius picked up the ball midway inside the Chelsea half, she was not sure what to do.
Then out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a flicker of movement to her left: Arsenal team-mate Alessia Russo was on the run. The pass was slightly behind the England No 9, but she took one touch with her right before blasting a volley into the bottom corner, leaving goalkeeper Hannah Hampton helpless.
“Her touch was perfect and her finish, it was just so good,” Blackstenius told The Athletic after that 76th-minute goal capped Arsenal’s 3-1 first-leg win on Tuesday in this all-English Champions League quarter-final, while their head coach Renee Slegers praised Russo’s “conviction”.
Such ruthlessness from Russo in scoring her eighth goal in this season’s Champions League — a record in the women’s game for an English player in one European campaign — gave Arsenal a two-goal cushion heading into the second leg a week today (Wednesday). It also highlighted what Chelsea are missing: a focal point and clinical finisher.
Sam Kerr, the club’s top scorer in all competitions this season, was absent here having played the full 90 minutes in the weekend’s Asian Cup final in Australia. Kerr has lacked game time since returning in September from the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture that had kept her out since January 2024. Mayra Ramirez has not played since a hamstring injury in pre-season. Aggie Beever-Jones, who missed Saturday’s 1-1 draw away to London City Lionesses with an ankle problem, has looked out of form.
It is no wonder Chelsea are vying for Manchester City’s Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw, whose contract expires at the end of this season.
Chelsea’s drop-off in finishing ability compared to recent years is noticeable. In the past three seasons, they have overperformed expectations in front of goal, but in this one, they have underperformed — scoring 32 times from an expected goals (xG, a measurement of the quality of chances created) value of 36.9. That is not disastrous, but it is the worst conversion rate in the 12-team Women’s Super League.
Inefficiency has been Arsenal’s downfall in the past, but at the Emirates Stadium last night, they were clinical when precious chances arose.
Russo was not the only one. In the 22nd minute, Blackstenius deftly nodded home Katie McCabe’s whipped left-footed free-kick to put the home side ahead before Chloe Kelly found herself in space and thought “Trust yourself” as she rifled a long-range shot to double the lead six minutes later.
“When you hit one like that, you know it’s going in,” Kelly told the media post-match. “Sometimes it clicks for you and sometimes you have to ride those storms, but I’m playing with such talented players around (me), it makes it much easier.” Both Kelly and Blackstenius put their efficiency down to enjoying their football.
It was not as if Chelsea were outplayed. They were just out-finished. Sonia Bompastor’s side dominated possession (59 per cent), had the same number of shots on target (six) and three more attempts than Arsenal (14-11).
In the first half, they came firing out of the blocks, caught Arsenal in transition and on another day could have been two up within 10 minutes had Alyssa Thompson’s deflected shot and Lauren James’ strike not hit the post. “That has been the story of our season,” said head coach Bompastor. Chelsea were the better side in large parts of the first half as momentum swung.
“We played a little bit into their hands and we gave them chances that we got away with,” Arsenal’s Beth Mead said. But a razor-like clinical edge provided the north London side with a solid foundation, whereas Chelsea had nothing to show for from the first 45 minutes.
The visitors felt hard done by when the on-field referee controversially disallowed a Veerle Buurman goal just before half-time for an attacking foul on Laia Codina, and not a handball, a decision checked by VAR but one which enraged Bompastor as she vented on the sideline, unleashing some fruity comments in her native French.
Sonia Bompastor was frustrated by Buurman’s goal being disallowed (Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
In a parallel universe, Chelsea could have been leading 3-2 at half-time. Instead, they were trailing 2-0.
There were signs of disconnection as stray passes failed to find a blue shirt, the most obvious example being Erin Cuthbert hoping to hit an onward runner from a free kick, only for the ball to go straight out of play.
James’ outrageous worldie with minimal backlift on the 66-minute mark got the WSL champions back in the game, but as the momentum shifted and Arsenal struggled to defend set pieces, the hosts refused to crumble. Sleger’s side stayed on task, remained calm, showed discipline and cohesiveness.
After, she praised the mentality her team showed throughout: “Whatever the scenario, we were just in the game constantly and happy to do the work.”
Chelsea right-back Lucy Bronze felt the 3-1 scoreline belies how even the game was, but Russo came up clutch when it mattered most, adding the third and sucking the wind out of the visitors’ sails.
It is the first time Arsenal, who beat Chelsea 2-0 away in the WSL in January, have registered back-to-back wins over them since 2016.
Renowned as the mentality monsters of the domestic women’s game, Chelsea will have to show that mettle next week at Stamford Bridge.
At the same stage of this competition last year, Bompastor’s side came from 2-0 down after the away first leg to defeat Manchester City 3-2 on aggregate. They need the same killer instinct again 12 months on.
