Up and running
After Chelsea started their Women's Super League campaign with a shock defeat at Liverpool, a response was required at Kingsmeadow against Manchester City from Emma Hayes' side. That they fashioned a goalscoring opportunity inside the opening 15 seconds suggested that was going to come.
But the Blues weren't quite at their best during the opening period. Sam Kerr was abnormally quiet and while Fran Kirby constantly searched for space, she didn't see too much of the ball. There were a couple of eye-catching surges in possession from Lauren James – more on her shortly – but it was Guro Reiten who led the Chelsea attack in the first half.
READ MORE Chelsea player ratings vs Man City – Berger makes strong comeback, Reiten and James impressive
The 28-year-old caused City defender Kerstin Casparij constant problems through a combination of direct dribbling and intelligent passing. If the visitors' right-back got tight, Reiten was able to wriggle beyond her. But if Casparij gave Reiten space and time, the Chelsea winger was able to smartly progress the ball.
It was no surprise that Reiten played a part in Chelsea's opener as she collected a touch from Jessie Fleming and squared for Kirby 12 yards out. The England international was left with a simple finish to put the Blues ahead at the interval.
In the second period, it was the turn of James to carry the Chelsea threat. The 20-year-old got stronger as the game went on and was unfortunate not to get on the scoresheet with a curled effort from the edge of the penalty box that flew narrowly wide of the City goal.
Chelsea needed their second goal and it came via the penalty spot. A shot from Sophie Ingle struck a hand on its way to goal and the referee – slightly contentiously – awarded a spot-kick. Kirby grabbed the ball and stood patiently as the City players contested the decision and aimed to get into her head.
Yet in a trick first pulled off by men's captain Cesar Azpilicueta at the Club World Cup in February, Kirby eventually passed the ball off to Maren Mjelde, who stepped up without being pestered and confidently finished from 12 yards to ensure Chelsea, the reigning champions, got their WSL campaign up and running.
The perfect return
It was on August 23 that Chelsea goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger released a statement via the club's official website. "I wanted to update fans directly that unfortunately, after four years of living cancer-free, there has been a recurrence detected in my thyroid," the German international wrote.
"I’ve said before that as a sportsperson you have to fight every day to be the best you can be and that’s something I will continue to do and I hope by sharing my journey, I can help others that find themselves in a similar situation.
"I am working closely with my club doctor and specialist in London and my treatment will start this week. I remain positive that my treatment will be as effective as last time and I’m looking forward to returning to the pitch and seeing you all at Kingsmeadow and Stamford Bridge."
There was no firm date set for Berger's comeback. Yet just 33 days after her announcement, she was back between the posts for Chelsea. And the 31-year-old produced an excellent display against City to keep a much-deserved clean sheet.
A couple of nervy moments with the ball at her feet aside, Berger was faultless. She claimed crosses and corners, held shots from distance, and produced a superb stop to deflect a volley from Laura Coombs onto her post and out of danger. It was the perfect return.
James becoming undroppable
It took the 20-year-old forward – who is the sister of men's star Reece – a little bit of time to grow into the contest at Kingsmeadow. There were a couple of occasions in the opening period in which James' talent was clear as she collected the ball, rolled away from a defender, and kept an attack moving forward. Yet in the second half, James went up through the gears.
Her close control is so refined and her body positioning so intelligent that no opponent can steal possession from James when she has her back to goal. And that enabled the England international to launch several dangerous Chelsea attacks despite coming under pressure in midfield.
James is a huge weapon for Chelsea to harness. Her physical profile coupled with her technical qualities make her a unique threat in a very talented squad. Although Hayes is keen to play down expectations around the player signed from Manchester United more than a year ago.
“I think we must remember her age," Hayes said with a knowing smile. "You know me well enough that I think it’s important that we take it one step at a time with her, but I thought in the second half she was exceptional.”
Hayes sticks to the process
Chelsea invested heavily in the summer to improve Hayes' squad with established stars Kadeisha Buchanan, Eve Perisset, Johanna Rytting Kaneryd, Jelena Cankovic and Katerina Svitkova arriving from clubs across Europe. Yet rather tellingly, it was only Buchanan that started against Man City.
That is because Hayes is intent on giving her new arrivals time to settle into life in England and life at Chelsea. She will not rush them nor expect too much from them too soon, as she explained in detail after her side's victory yesterday.
“I’ve said before that nobody is going to come into this league and go up like that [a sharp rise]," Hayes explained. "There is such a period of adaptation that you can’t take for granted. If I think of someone like Katerina Svitkova, she might be ahead of the players who just coming into the country because she has played in the league.
“For me, Kaneryd, Cankovic, Perisset, they are adapting. You’ve got to consider language, the principles, the fact today is the first time they’ve been at a packed-out Kingsmeadow. They are adapting all the time because there are so many elements of the game, in and out of possession, restarts that have to be learned, there is so much at the elite level and that takes some time in itself.
"I always try to future plan for this team because I want to maintain success. I am preparing all the time for what we need to do now, medium term, and in the future.
"We’re at a high level. To get into this team you have to adapt to our way of playing and get up to those levels and have those standards. But the games will come thick and fast and I have to keep reminding people – not just myself and my team – that last season we got to January and had 13 players. Things happen [in a season] so it might feel swollen now but it won’t as the season goes on.”
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