Chelsea 2 – 1 Manchester City
By Catherine MacKenzie (5/9/25)
Above: Ellie Carpenter celebrates. Photo: ChelseaFCW on X.
Chelsea and Manchester City ended last season in very different ways. Whilst Chelsea won the league unbeaten, City stumbled; an injury crisis stretching their squad too far. At one point without winger Lauren Hemp, captain Alex Greenwood, top scorer Bunny Shaw and electric forward Vivienne Miedema, City finished fourth, out of contention for the Champions League.
Ahead of the game, both teams’ England internationals were celebrated for their European Championship win – including the injured Lucy Bronze and Lauren James – and Chelsea’s club record signing Alyssa Thompson was presented to the crowd.
The teams
Both sides included new names in the starting eleven. For City, German midfielder Sydney Lohmann was given the nod whilst Chelsea gave Australian import Ellie Carpenter her first WSL start.
City gambled with a young backline including academy prospects Gracie Prior and Jade Rose, who started alongside Alex Greenwood at left back and Kerstin Casparij on the right.
Without James or Mayra Ramirez, Chelsea started Aggie Beever-Jones up top, with Maika Hamano and Wieke Kaptein behind her.
The action
In a physical start, City had the upper hand. Chelsea goalkeeper Hannah Hampton was forced into an early save, and the London club did not escape their own half for the opening five minutes.
The momentum changed as the half progressed, with Chelsea being dangerous on the counter through the pace of Carpenter. City looked vulnerable from corners, and defensively fragile. Their young backline struggled and at times seemed to not know where to pass the ball.
Yamashita saved well from a Sandy Baltimore shot at close range before Carpenter and Beever-Jones combined sublimely to put Chelsea ahead.
Carpenter ran riot against Alex Greenwood at left-back, beating her for pace and causing City constant problems with her speed. In midfield, City mastermind Yui Hasegawa was managed well – the minute she had the ball, three Chelsea players surrounded her.
Following half-time, City had a period of momentum defined by a number of chances for Hasegawa. Despite this, it was Chelsea who made it 2-0 as Wieke Kaptein got the better of Greenwood and her cross found Maika Hamano who shot home.
City did get their goal – an unfortunate own goal for Niamh Charles after Greenwood’s free into the box.
The final moments were marred by two injuries for City – a painful reminder of their troubles last season. First Greenwood was forced off with a suspected ankle injury, before Lily Murphy was down with a possible broken arm.
The referee did not stop play – to the aggravation of City fans – and it was down to Chelsea’s Hampton to check on Murphy.
Player of the match: Ellie Carpenter
Chelsea’s new right-back put in a faultless WSL debut, playing a pivotal role in setting up both goals.
What this means for the teams
Chelsea start their season by continuing their WSL winning streak against a formidable opponent at home. They will take some confidence in keeping a stacked City attack largely at bay, as well as in the fact that the forward line seemed relatively symbiotic.
City will be disappointed not to leave London with a point. At times during the closing stages, City had a definite upper hand; particularly through Hasegawa who had a flurry of shots within a ten minute period. The injuries to Greenwood and Murphy are concerning – particularly as Greenwood has only recently returned from a lengthy spell on the sidelines, and they have not recruited much in the way of a backup this summer.
There were also visible signs of frustration for City as their attack did not seem to have the same cohesion as their London counterparts, and they do not have much time to cement those relationships.
Chelsea next face Aston Villa away, whilst City welcome Brighton to the Joie Stadium.
Teams: CHELSEA (4-2-3-1): Hampton, Carpenter, Bjorn, Bright, Charles, Walsh, Kaptein, Hamano, Cuthbert, Baltimore, Beever-Jones. Substitutes: Peng, Buurman, Nusken, Macario, Reiten, Rytting Kaneryd, Kerr, Jean-Francois, Potter.
Scorers: Beever-Jones 31’, Hamano 54’.
MANCHESTER CITY (4-2-3-1): Yamashita, Casparij, Rose, Greenwood, Prior, Hasegawa, Lohmann, Murphy, Miedema, Hemp, Shaw. Substitutes: Keating, Layzell, Coombs, Weinroither, Ouahabi, Blinkilde Brown, Thomas, Lewis.
Scorer: Charles (OG) 70’.
Attendance: TBC
Referee: Emily Heaslip.
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