Is there ever a good time to play Chelsea? Fresh off their victory in the Subway Cup final on Sunday, would they parlay that into a domination of a Brighton side without several key players or would they be drained by the emotions of the weekend? The answer may have been the latter, but Chelsea are where they are for a reason, they win games week in week out – somehow, some damn way.

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• For a full recap of the match action courtesy of Luke Nicoli on the Official BHAFC Website click: HERE
• Match highlights are available via the WSL YouTube channel: HERE
• The SheGulls Podcast will be reviewing the game live at 9pm on Monday via the SheGulls YouTube channel: HERE – which you can also watch on catch-up any time after broadcast!

Brighton & Hove Albion

• We might as well get the negatives out of the way first. Both goals came from Sandy Baltimore getting dangerous crosses into the box down the left-hand side. Rachel McLauchlan had trouble with Baltimore all game, but was left too isolated too often against one of the best wide-players in the world. The difficulty was that when players were drawn out to cover, the structure of the defence weakened to the point where one of the smallest players on the pitch, Alyssa Thompson, was able to score a free header. The Albion equalised – which we’ll come too – but the second Chelsea goal came from the exact same avenue of attack. Baltimore gets a ball into the box, this time low, and with the help of a ricochet or two and some good composure from Thompson, the ball fell to Lexi Potter who clipped it home from short range.
• The amount of goals that Brighton have conceded from balls into the box from out wide is alarming. By my calculations at least 13 of the 22 total goals allowed have come specifically from that avenue of attack, and there’s a good argument for up to 4 others to be included based on the goal either being scored from wide or the danger starting there initially. The book on Brighton this season is expose them on the flanks, make them break shape, and capitalise on the result. When you’ve only lost one game this season by more than a single goal, the frustration at not being able to address this issue becomes all the more frustrating.
• Carla Camacho’s goal was fantastic to see in more ways than one. Not only was it her first (hopefully of many) in the WSL for the club, but it also showcased her ability to drive forward and create an opportunity of her own making. Admittedly her shot took a rather unusual deflection which Hannah Hampton seemed to think was taking it wide, but if Camacho doesn’t get herself into position to take the strike, then she doesn’t score.
• In general the game felt fairly even, and although Chelsea dominated the statistical measures, they really didn’t offer much after they took the lead. Taking Lauren James off and putting Kadeisha Buchanan on after just 57 minutes felt like an acknowledgement that they wanted to shut Brighton down rather than go in search of another goal. It worked, they did come away with the three points, but Brighton poured it on hard at the end and if it had ended 2-2 then the Blues would only have had themselves to blame.
• In three of the last four games against Chelsea the Albion have almost matched their opponents stride for stride, but they still only have a solitary single point to show for it. Part of taking this club forward will be not just coming close, but finally grasping that brass ring.

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Chelsea

• The Blues had a field day down the flanks in the first half as alluded to above. Thompson and Baltimore were the standouts, but the midfield supported them well and Lexi Potter, already an elite talent, will surely be a full Lioness in the next 12-18 months.
• There was a sense that this Chelsea team, for a myriad of reasons, is beatable. The difficulty is the more aggressive you are, the more gaps are exposed, so it is a always balancing act – one that the current champions nearly always fall on the right side of.

Other Business

• Kingsmeadow is a pleasant venue, but there is little to no home atmosphere – except from Basil of course! It doesn’t surprise me that they want to move further into London and share a larger stadium for these type of games, but I’ll be sad to see Kingsmeadow go if they do. The attendance of just 2581 does speak for itself though.
• We had a really great level of away support once again, helped of course by the club-provided coach travel. Everyone seemed in good spirits throughout and the players did us proud.
• Unfortunately we did have a couple of instances of swearing or offensive chants from one or two of our fans reported back to us. We would encourage people if possible to try and concentrate on our team with their vocal support, rather than engaging or denigrating the opposition fanbase or team. We aren’t the men’s game, the tribalism and aggression isn’t present the same way, so it feels like we can be a positive force if we stick to what we do best!

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The SheGulls Podcast – where we will discuss the Chelsea and indeed Liverpool games in more detail and preview our upcoming game against Leicester – will be live on Monday @ 9pm on YouTube – and available subsequently on demand by clicking on the ‘Live’ tab on the channel menu.

Audio of the entire episode will then be released on Wednesday at 1pm via Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

See you all soon!