Before Manchester City had even played their fixture of the WSL weekend, Chelsea manager, Sonia Bompastor, conceded that “the title race is probably gone,” and that it was essentially City’s title to lose. Last Saturday, Chelsea suffered a 2-0 defeat to Arsenal after goals from Beth Mead and Mariona Caldentey, while City went on to win against London City Lionesses, moving them nine points clear of second-placed Chelsea with nine games to play.
With a maximum of 27 points available until the WSL season ends, Chelsea are not mathematically out of the title race, but it would require Manchester City to drop nine points before May — a highly unlikely scenario. However, the narrative could shift Chelsea’s way when the two title contenders clash on Sunday, 1 February — a win for City would see them move 12 points clear, but a Chelsea victory would narrow the gap to just six points. A draw would keep the point difference between the two teams stable as both title contenders would receive only one point. Nonetheless, if Chelsea come away from Sunday’s game with only a point, third-placed Arsenal, who sit only a point behind the Blues, could take second place should they beat Leicester City. This makes the Chelsea-City game a pivotal moment in the WSL season.
Coincidentally, the two teams met during a mid-week League Cup match just a few days prior to their respective matches against Arsenal and London City Lionesses. That game saw a Wieke Kaptein header end Manchester City’s 16-game unbeaten run as well as their League Cup campaign. Chelsea’s win over City should have been the spark that ignited a late-season title challenge, but a loss to Arsenal has certainly curbed this momentum. Despite all this, Chelsea being the reigning WSL champions, their stellar head-to-head record against City, and having beat them in a WSL fixture in September, are all signs that they should not be written off — for the game or for the title.
“Chelsea Ladies 3 Rosengard 0” by cfcunofficial is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
