Chelsea Women are through to the FA Cup final after a come-from-behind 2–1 win over Liverpool at Kingsmeadow in the semi-final. Olivia Smith opened the scoring for the visitors against the run of play. However, Chelsea pulled one back in first-half injury time through Erin Cuthbert, before Aggie Beever-Jones scored the winner in second-half stoppage time.
The game started in a fashion typical of most Chelsea matches this season. The Blues were able to keep the ball for the majority of the game. Liverpool’s only chances came when they managed to clear the ball and find one of their runners. Despite dominating possession, the Blues failed to create clear-cut chances in the first half.
In the 21st minute, however, Marie-Therese Höbinger managed to find Smith making a run behind the Chelsea defense. Despite efforts from Santi Baltimore and Millie Bright to stop her, the Canadian found the back of the net, continuing her impressive run of form for the Reds. Hannah Hampton had no chance to stop the shot, giving Liverpool a surprise lead.
Despite keeping the pressure up, Chelsea continued to struggle in front of goal, as Liverpool sat deep and managed to block every attempt from the home side. However, when Santi Baltimore found herself with the ball on the left and, after some clever play, attempted a cross. Even though it was blocked, Mayra Ramírez won the ball. She found Erin Cuthbert, who sent a lofted shot into the goal to equalize for the Blues.
The second half followed a similar pattern to the first. Chelsea created several good chances, with Aggie Beever-Jones getting a number of attempts that failed to find the back of the net. Toward the end of the match, however, Liverpool came close to stealing the win. In a rare foray into the Chelsea box, visitors’ captain Taylor Hinds attempted a cross that floated toward Hannah Hampton’s goal and hit the crossbar, before Millie Bright managed to clear the danger.
But just minutes later, after another impressive move, this time on the left wing, Santi Baltimore found Aggie Beever-Jones with a pinpoint cross. The English forward made no mistake this time, firing past Liverpool goalkeeper Rachel Laws to put Chelsea ahead.
With seconds remaining, Liverpool pushed for a late equalizer, but the Chelsea defense stood firm to see out the win. After falling short in last season’s semi-final, the five-time winners are back in the FA Cup final. They will face the winners of Sunday’s Manchester derby at Wembley in May.