Young forwards Aggie Beever-Jones and Maika Hamano demonstrated the bright future of Chelsea as they continued their winning start to the season under new manager Sonia Bompastor with a 3-1 victory over FC Twente. This win places the Blues at the top of Group B in the Champions League, three points ahead of both Twente and second-placed Real Madrid, while Celtic trail in their inaugural European campaign.
As seen in their 3-2 win against Real Madrid last week, there are concerns about the visiting team's defensive vulnerabilities, but as long as they keep winning, they have time to address these issues. Few managers can make eight changes to their starting lineup and still maintain fluidity between players, but Chelsea's squad is exceptional. Under Emma Hayes' leadership, they perfected the art of maintaining competitiveness during squad changes, a legacy that continues.
Hayes worked diligently to give young players like Hamano and Beever-Jones playing time last season, aiming to prepare them for the first team under her successor. The integration of these talents has continued, and Bompastor has effectively blended in the summer signings. On paper, this was a weaker team compared to the one that secured a hard-fought 2-1 win over Arsenal on Saturday. Key players like Lauren James, Millie Bright, Mayra Ramírez, Lucy Bronze, Erin Cuthbert, and Guro Reiten were on the bench.
Yet, in Enschede, Chelsea dominated. In the first 10 minutes, they had 78% possession, which only dipped to 60% by halftime. It took just seven minutes for Chelsea to score against a Twente team that had beaten Celtic 2-0 in their opening group game and had rested some of their best players for a 1-1 draw with Excelsior to be fresh for Chelsea's visit. Beever-Jones' rising strike took a slight deflection as it flew past goalkeeper Olivia Clark.
Beever-Jones and Hamano were pivotal in Chelsea's attacking play. Beever-Jones sent an acrobatic overhead kick into the empty stand behind the Twente goal, while Hamano, after receiving a pass from Ashley Lawrence, twisted free of Danique van Ginkel and fired over. Hamano secured Chelsea's second goal after the Blues won possession in the opposition half, lofting the ball over Clark and into the net.
Twente manager Joran Pot had acknowledged before the match: “We are the underdogs, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have a chance.” Despite living up to the underdog role, Twente had their chances, with Amanda Andradóttir firing over and Nikée van Dijk forcing a smart save from Zecira Musovic.
Allowing teams to regain control in games they dominate has been a recurring issue under Bompastor, and it was no different in the Netherlands. However, Twente's technical inferiority, particularly in the final pass, allowed Chelsea to escape unscathed. Twente's brief period of pressure was cut short when Chelsea recovered from a break, and Beever-Jones fed substitute Ramírez, who was fouled by Lieske Carleer in the box. Substitute Reiten coolly converted the resulting penalty to extend Chelsea's lead.
There was some consolation for the home team when Van Dijk outpaced Nathalie Björn and slotted past Musovic, sparking wild celebrations among the home fans. Despite a few bright moments for Twente, this was never a significant test for Chelsea. Twente knows these games against the Blues are unlikely to yield points in the group. For Bompastor's side, it's another win, another learning opportunity, and another chance to address defensive lapses that could be more costly later in the competition.
