3 takeaways as Chelsea Women coast past Reading to hoist fourth straight title
Behind two vital goals by none other than Sam Kerr, the Chelsea Women eased past Reading to clinch their fourth successive Women’s Super League title.
Winning takes talent, but to do it over and over again takes character. There was no other way this season could have ended. After losing the first match of the league campaign to Liverpool, the Chelsea Women never looked back.
The task on May 27 was the same Emma Hayes’ side had against Manchester United in 2022. Win, and the title was theirs. It may have been a far inferior opponent compared to last year, but Kelly Chambers and Reading were fighting for their top-fight lives. While they ultimately fell short, you have to feel for the women’s team at Reading who are clearly not being given the same sort of support by its club as the rest of the teams in the WSL.
CFC fans flooded the stands at the Select Car Leasing Stadium with the Royals playing in what looked like more of a road match on their home ground. The Blues pieced together a quality first half, allowing just two shots while scoring two goals to put one hand on the trophy with 45 minutes left in the season. With the title in sight, the west Londoners’ took their foot on the gas in the second half, controlling the the contest at every level of the pitch.
The Blues finished with 10 more goals than any other team in the WSL as Sam Kerr scored her 90th goal of her CFCW career to put a cap on another stellar goal scoring season. Lucia Garcia’s second half goal at Preston Park ended up being meaningless for United whose successful campaign concluded with an honorable second-place finish. Just five of the Blues’ shots challenged the Royals’ stop stopper, but none of that mattered because the home side gave the then three-time champions far too much space in the middle of the park.
CHAMPIONS OF ENGLAND, FOUR TIMES IN A ROW. 🎶 pic.twitter.com/pzUIUl4fnr
— Chelsea FC Women (@ChelseaFCW) May 27, 2023
Magdalena Eriksson departs the club as someone who has lifted the WSL trophy in every season since being promoted to team captain. As each member of the team received their respective medal, Eriksson and Harder were given the largest round of applauses. It may have been their last day in Chelsea blue, but the appreciation that the two have been given from the fans, the club, and the entire media has been extraordinary.
The team is going to look a little bit different next season, but what the 2022/2023 group pieced together set the stage for what is to come for years to come. Not only did they maintain the standard domestically, they continued to raise the bar in the UEFA Women’s Champions League. Here are three takeaways from a match that finally crowned the west London outfit the champions of England for the fourth campaign running.