Chelsea welcomed Everton at Kingsmeadow for their Women’s FA Cup clash. The Toffees started the match brilliantly with an Olimpico from Sarah Holmgaard. A penalty changed the game and allowed Chelsea to equalize after 36 minutes. Read our match report on Chelsea vs Everton here.
Match Highlights
- Sarah Holmgaard’s Olimpico opens the score.
- Inredible goalkeeping by Courtney Brosnan.
- Lawrence earned Chelsea a penalty – Macario scored it.
- Hamano finds the net two minutes after coming on.
- Baltimore converts a second penalty.
Looking to break the deadlock
Chelsea controlled the match right from the start. However, their opponent Everton is not one to give it away easily. Especially with a top quality goalkeeper like Brosnan. The first opportunities are for Charles and James but both times Brosnan is there to make the save. When Everton does break it is with incredible speed from Toni Payne and Kelly Gago.
Spectacular goal by Holmgaard
Sarah Holmgaard gives Everton the lead in a magical way: right from the corner-kick. Her effort, probably looking for a teammate at the far post, lands in the far corner.
Chelsea immediately tries to find answer when James sents her cross from the left to Rytting Kaneryd at the far post. The Swedish international’s downward header is stopped by Brosnan.
Keeping Chelsea at bay
Everton pushes their luck when a mistake in the back is picked up by Ramírez. Ladd and Fernandez tried to play it out from the back but Ladd could not control the ball when she got it back. Ramírez was there to pick it up and drive towards goal. Brosnan came out of her goal, making herself as big as possible so Ramírez did not have the space to shoot. Putting a stop to a big opportunity for Chelsea to equalize.
Chelsea are awarded a penalty
Everton did an excellent job at keeping Chelsea at bay. The Blues did not create any big opportunities but were able to equalize when awarded a penalty. Lawrence drove down the right wing towards the box. She had Watson with her the whole way. When they reached the box, Lawrence tumbled and it was enough for the referee to point to the spot. The foul seemed out side the box.
- Macario took the penalty and just squeezed it in between Brosnan and the post. The goalkeeper picked the right corner but wasn’t fast enough.
Before half-time Chelsea pushed to take the lead. Ramírez was sent away by Cuthbert with a ball over the top. Brosnan hesitated to intercept before she could get there – leaving quite a bit of distance for her to cover back to her goal. Ramírez picked up on this and lobs it in goal.
Second-Half: One change for Everton
Brian Sørensen replaced Watson with Lawley at the break. The second-half picks up right where the teams left off. Chelsea is pushing the Everton lines to find a way in but The Toffees hold.
Sonia Bompastor makes her first change near the one-hour mark: Sandy Baltimore on for Charles. Baltimore had a minor injury and they hoped she could play some minutes in this FA Cup match.
Super Sub extends the lead
With 30 more minutes on the clock we are still at 2-1. Bompastor takes Rytting Kneryd and Macario off for Hamano and Nüsken. Especially Hamano proves to be a brilliant sub as she scored the 3-1. Ramírez was fouled in a good spot for a Chelsea free kick. Lauren James aimed it beautifully towards the far post. Ramírez was there to head it in but the ball hit the post. Luckily Hamano was there to slot it home.
More changes incoming
Brian Sørensen knew something had to change if he wanted his squad to score against Chelsea. He took Mjelde, Hayashi and Toni Payne off for Vanhaevermaet, Heather Payne and Stenevik.
After extending the lead, Bompastor felt comfotable enough to make all of their remaining changes: Beever-Jones and Jean-Francois on for Ramírez and Walsh.
Ten more minutes to go & down to ten players
There is a break in play when Bjorn went down and needed treatment. She could not continue so Chelsea was down to ten players. When play resumed Jean-Francois made a mistake, trying to pass to Millie Bright but Lawley intercepted. Her effort on goal was blocked and earned Everton a corner-kick. They were not able to create any danger from it.
The referee took her time in deciding on a possible penalty for Chelsea. Aggie Beever-Jones was fouled in the box by Hope but it was unclear if it was enough for a penalty. The referee consulted the assistant and decided it was. Sandy Baltimore converted it, again with Brosnan in the right corner – just to slow to make the save.
Chelsea secured their place in the Women’s FA Cup Quarter-Finals after a 4-1 win over Everton. They join Aston Villa, Manchester United, Liverpool, Manchester City, Crystal Palace, Arsenal and Sunderland.
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