It had been over 10 months since Chelsea stepped on a football pitch in the Champions League, and right from kick-off, the Blues seemed ready to rewrite their shocking ending to last season’s campaign. Led by stability in the back through Millie Bright, and Kadeisha Buchanan, Chelsea stalled Paris Saint-Germain on its home turf, shutting it out in the Champions League for the first time since April of 2021 in the first leg of the quarterfinals of the competition against French foe, Lyon. PSG was not only without its all-time leading goal-scorer, Marie-Antoinette Katoto, but the in-form Dutch international, Lieke Martens was a late scratch due to illness.
Most of the attacking duties fell on former Blue Ramona Bachmann, captain Grace Geyoro, and the 19-year-old, Laurina Fazer. There may have been some moments of creativity, especially from Fazer, but the backline for CFC pieced together a masterclass in a building that has fond memories of giving up two goals that nearly cost the Blues a spot in the semifinals. Erin Cuthbert and Sophie Ingle dominated the middle of the park for Chelsea, and while they did not enjoy the majority of the ball, there was never a moment where the Blues looked to be out of control.
After their fourth straight win in all competitions, Paul Green reflected on the team’s outing in Paris:
"“It proves that we can go anywhere, perform and get a good result,” Green said. “To come away from home and to get a good result against PSG….it is a fantastic result which will give us confidence going into the rest of the campaign. “We need to show that we are good enough across the whole group but it’s a fantastic start. We’ve got to carry that through the remaining games and make sure that we accumulate the number of points that we need to get out of the group.”"
Following the stunning volley by Bright after 30 minutes, CFC came out of the locker room with a much more composed game plan, playing much further back, and letting the relentlessness, and grit of Cuthbert, along with the speed up top create counters going the other way. Taking on a team that was picked to be at the top of the group along with the Blues, Denise Reddy, and Chelsea made it an even more difficult task for the ambitious PSG to get back to the round that Lyon eliminated in the previous campaign.
Last season, the west London side began its Champions League campaign with a 3-3 draw against Wolfsburg, already finding itself in a better position to advance compared to last season. Even though Sam Kerr continues to look unlike herself, the Blues still discovered ways to break open a contest that for the most part was very cagey. From a much-needed clean sheet against opposition in Europe, here are the lessons learned from the Blues’ perfect start to the Champions League.
Chelsea backline has to continue performances like those
So far this season, it has not been as smooth for the Blues’ defense as they would have liked. Constantly conceding careless goals on setpieces has been one of the issues, having collected just one clean sheet through four league games. Limiting corner kicks against PSG was one of the answers along with a much more experienced, and compact backline that included Maren Mjelde in the starting IX for the first time since the win over Manchester City at Kingsmeadow.
From quality one-on-one defending from Buchanan, timely clearances from Bright, or assistance from the midfield, it was a whole team effort to shut down an attack with so much youth and firepower. Ann-Katrin Berger was not challenged whatsoever by this electric attack of the French outfit. While the home team were missing some of its key contributors, it still possessed a whole lot of danger and quality. The German goalkeeper faced only one shot on target, with the final touch lacking for PSG all night. Despite the Blues clashing with a bottom-of-the-table team this upcoming weekend, there needs to be consistency over several matches in order for the Blues to continue this run of form.
Erin Cuthbert’s work rate is truly remarkable
At this point, there are not enough descriptors to describe what Cuthbert does for this Chelsea team. Whether it was getting back in defense, starting a counter, or whipping in a corner kick, Cuthbert was all over the pitch in Paris. She was one of the main reasons for the lack of continuity between the midfield and attack for PSG, constantly working to win the ball back and ignite players like Pernille Harder, and Guro Reiten going forward.
Her heat map after the game tells the entire story. Not only did she collect what would end up being the match-winning assist, the Scottish international created the most chances on the team, won the most tackles, and had 11 duels won which was the best mark by any Blue at the Stade Jean-Bouin. She is one of four players to have played in every minute of the WSL this season so far, along with Chelsea’s two stable centerbacks. It is a shame that Cuthbert will not be participating in the World Cup over the summer, but that may give her even more motivation to give it her all for the Blues throughout the season.
Johanna Rytting Kaneryd deserves a start in the near future
It is now back-to-back standout outings for the Swedish international, as Rytting Kaneryd has grown into a game-changer off the bench. As soon as the 25-year-old midfielder was subbed on, the Blues were no longer on the back foot. Chelsea was opening play back up, finding Rytting Kaneyrd on the left wing, and using her dynamism to open up the defense back up again. Not only did she provide some width to the attack towards the end of the game, but Rytting Kaneyrd made some crucial interruptions on the defensive end to contribute to the Blues closing out the team’s second clean sheet of the season.
Over the summer, she came into a team with needed depth like this in order to compete in a variety of competitions. Against Everton, and in the first Champions League fixture, Rytting Kaneyrd without a doubt earned herself a chance to earn the first start of her Chelsea career against Brighton. She has played in all four games, and with the need for rotation coming up, using her in the starting IX for Reiten will not only give the Norwegian some rest but provide the Swede with an opportunity to bolster her confidence even more.