Chelsea cruised to a commanding 6-0 victory over Austrian side St. Pölten on matchday three of the Women’s Champions League on Tuesday night, a result that included the club’s landmark 150th goal in European competition and moved them up – at least temporarily – to second in the table.
As it happened
On paper, it could have been even more of a rout. St. Pölten have yet to score in the UWCL but have conceded 15 in three games. Last year, they lost all six group stage matches, conceding 20 and scoring four, including a 7-0 loss to Barcelona. There were signs of promise, however: they fought Manchester City right to the final whistle, eventually losing by a narrow 2-3 scoreline.
Facing their never-ending quest for the Champions League title, Chelsea would have come into the game eager to improve their goal difference, with a fresh-from-injury Sam Kerr leading the line. In the early stages, the Blues lacked the clinical edge to put themselves ahead – they created chances, but couldn’t find the back of the net.
With their new centre-back pairing of Lucy Bronze and Naomi Girma so high they were camped near the edge of the St. Pölten penalty box, the ball rarely escaped to Chelsea’s half of the pitch.
Kerr squandered an excellent early chance from close range, but Netherlands international Wieke Kaptein made no mistake with a similar opportunity, opening the scoring after 12 minutes. Girma appeared to double Chelsea’s lead just after the half-hour mark, but her effort was ruled out after Kerr was judged offside in the build-up.
Moments before the break, however, Catarina Macario made it 2–0 with a precise low strike from the edge of the area.
For much of the match, it looked as though St. Pölten might limit Chelsea to a respectable scoreline. The hosts defended deep and their low block initially stood firm, but as the game wore on, the difference in quality became increasingly apparent. Fatigue began to set in, and St. Pölten struggled to contain Chelsea’s relentless attacking options.
Chelsea continued their dominance after the break as St. Pölten shot-stopper Carina Schlüter denied Macario a quick third before Alyssa Thompson won a penalty, which Macario converted. Thompson later had a goal ruled out for offside in the build-up, but Kerr eventually found the net to make it 4-0. A deflected Lauren James strike – on her first appearance since the summer’s European Championship final – added a fifth, credited as an own goal by Lisa Ebert, before Kerr got her second to make it six for the visitors and thoroughly assert their dominance.
The lineups
STP: Schlüter; Krizaj, Nagy, Ebert, Klein, Gutmann; Ollivier, Elmore, Laino, Peneau, Gutmann; Brunold.
CHE: Peng; Carpenter, Bronze, Girma, Baltimore; Macario, Walsh, Kaptein; Rytting Kaneryd, Kerr, Thompson.