Sonia Bompastor addressed the gathered media during her pre-match press conference at Cobham on Thursday, as her Chelsea side prepare to host Aston Villa at Kingsmeadow in the 2024/25 Barclays Women’s Super League curtain raiser.
The action will get underway at 19:00 UK on Friday, and the former French international voiced her excitement at embarking on a new challenge with a side that she feels is “really excited” for the season to start.
What did Sonia Bompastor say?
“We’re really excited for the season,” were the first words out of Sonia Bompastor’s mouth during Thursday’s pre-match press conference, her first ahead of a Barclays Women’s Super League clash since taking the Chelsea job.
After Emma Hayes’ successful reign in SW6, the former Olympique Lyonnais boss has taken charge and a busy summer has left fans excited for what’s to come. Speaking on what fans should expect at Kingsmeadow on Friday, Bompastor remarked: “I hope they’ll see a team that’s competitive and enjoying playing together at the highest level. The most important thing is getting results and we want to win and start the league strongly.”
“They [the players] can’t wait to start the season. They’re ready, excited and I think we’ve been working together so that in their mind it’s really clear what we want to achieve together in terms of results but also in terms of how we play together.”
It’s hard to predict what would qualify as a successful first season for the 44-year-old. Chelsea have become almost synonymous with success throughout the past decade or so, but given the unpredictability of a new manager and their closest rivals also strengthening well, fans may have to endure a rough patch before witnessing their team lay their hands on more silverware.
Embed from Getty ImagesBompastor insists that the club still have the “same ambitions” as they did throughout Hayes’ time in charge, adding that “when you’re at Chelsea, you want to win every title and compete in every competition.”
“We know it’ll be tough,” she continued, “but if you’re ready and the players are competitive, we like to be in that position to be able to compete.”
The opening day of the 2024/25 Barclays Women’s Super League will see two new managers face off against each other, with Robert de Pauw also a new arrival following Carla Ward’s shock departure at the end of last season.
Bompastor was full of praise for the Dutchman and was keen to welcome him to the league, and insisted that “if you look at Aston Villa’s results, they’ve had a really good pre-season. We know every team will be so competitive. This league is not easy, but we’ve been working hard and we feel ready.”
She hopes that the home advantage will come in handy, “being able to start the league with a lot of fans in the stadium.”
The Blues thrashed Feyenoord Vrouwen 9-0 at Kingsmeadow last weekend, and Bompastor suggested that “the fans are so close to us and we can hear them – it’s good for us.”
Chelsea take on Aston Villa on Friday, 20 September with kick-off scheduled for 19:00 UK. You’ll be able to follow that match and hear the managers’ reactions right here on FromTheSpot.
