Long before Sam Kerr scored the winner against Wolfsburg in a 2-1 victory that cemented Chelsea‘s spot in the top four of the UEFA Women’s Champions League, Lucy Bronze saved them twice.
Bronze’s interventions came at a time when Wolfsburg were picking holes in Chelsea’s disorganized defense. As the German club looked for what would’ve been a key second goal with a 1-0 lead, two last-gasp pieces of Bronze brilliance kept her side in the game.
First, Bronze cleared a Lineth Beerensteyn shot off the line. Then came her finest moment: Wolfsburg caught Chelsea on the counterattack, defender Millie Bright adrift, but Bronze’s tracking back saw her block a Kessya Bussy effort just as it looked like Wolfsburg were going to go two up. They were two match-shifting moments and effectively kept Chelsea in it.
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Bronze’s equalizer just before the break came as a crushing blow for Wolfsburg, who had failed to convert their first-half dominance into a more sizeable lead. And after the halftime change in which Sjoeke Nüsken was introduced, Chelsea found their foothold and took control. Kerr’s brilliant header secured the valuable three points, and saw Chelsea take third in the Champions League standings.
That top-four spot means Chelsea progress straight to the quarterfinals, avoiding a pesky playoff — extra matches they can do without in an already packed season. But they needed Bronze’s never-say-die attitude and selflessness to keep one foot in this tie after a first half in which they were comprehensively outplayed for most of it.
We already knew that Bronze isn’t like other players. She continually pushes her body to extremes few can fathom — like playing through last summer’s Euros with a fractured tibia. There was that iconic performance against Sweden in the tournament where she scored a key goal, and basically dragged the team through singlehandedly. It was iconic, and Chelsea were thankful for that same incredible attitude in Germany.
Chelsea traveled to Wolfsburg off the back of mixed form in the Women’s Super League, but quiet authority in the Champions League. They are six points off Manchester City in the league — unfamiliar territory for a team that has dominated that competition for so long — but in Europe, they had comprehensive victories over Paris FC, St. Polten and Roma, and that draw with Barcelona. Out of the lot, the Barcelona draw showed their maturity — they controlled it brilliantly.
But any hope of this being a repeat performance were quickly dashed in the opening exchanges where Chelsea looked defensively disorganized, and unbalanced. The decision to start Lauren James in midfield alongside Erin Cuthbert and Keira Walsh meant they lacked pressure on the ball, and Wolfsburg dominated the early proceedings. Alexandra Popp had already had one sight of goal when she headed over after 15 minutes, and a minute later, after Wolfsburg snaffled up a loose pass from Chelsea goalkeeper Livia Peng, Popp struck with a beautiful half volley from the edge of the box. It had been coming.
Then came Bronze’s equalizer and the key tactical shift. Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor swapped Nusken on for James, and Chelsea grew. Alyssa Thompson struck the post, Cuthbert had an effort saved, and Kerr scored the winner: a wonderfully judged looping header. Kerr and James have yet to reach full fitness, and while both missed chances they would usually expect to finish, the sight of Kerr planting that header so beautifully must have brought joy to the stoic Bompastor. Nusken’s introduction gave Chelsea balance in midfield and all looked set. But it was a frantic final few minutes as Walsh was forced off injured, Bronze then took a ball flush to the face, and Wolfsburg found another sliver of opportunity, with Vivien Endemann hitting the bar late on.
Ultimately, this was a case of job done for Chelsea. For the first time in a while they look vulnerable in the league, and securing a top-four place in the Champions League could be so important for their season. They’re still a little behind Barcelona and OL Lyonnes when it comes to judging the clear favorites for this tournament, but Chelsea have the ability to build further in the second half of the season. James and Kerr will be match-sharpened, and they’ll have indispensable defender Nathalie Björn back. And they’ll also have Bronze, defying age, reason and any sense of self preservation.
The Champions League has evaded Chelsea so far. It’s the tournament they’re so desperate to claim. If it is to be this year, Bronze will be a key figure in that narrative. She has already won the competition three times with Lyonnes, and it’s her example Chelsea need to follow if they are to end the wait.
