The preparation is over. 33 days after the Chelsea men's team took on Manchester City to kick off its Premier League campaign, Chelsea Women begins its pursuit of No. 8.
It's been far too long without competitive CFCW football in all of our lives. In fact, it has been 125 days since the last CFCW Women's Super League fixture in May. Good news, though. We are done waiting.
A new leader. A new set of a players. The same expectations.
Now led by the former Bayer Leverkusen leader Robert de Pauw, Aston Villa travels to Kingsmeadow for the season opener against the West Londoners tonight. Kick off is set for 2:00 p.m. ET in the United States or 7 p.m. UK time.
For those in the UK, the match is slated to be broadcast live on BBC Two.
It'll be the ninth all-time WSL meeting between the sides since the Villians jumped to the English first tier in 2020. The Blues' form in this fixture is striking: they've claimed victory in all eight previous encounters. Even some outfit you may know from Manchester, with all its pedigree, can't boast such a flawless record against the West Midlands club.
More specifically, Chelsea has flat-out annihilated Villa in these matchups, outscoring it 23 to one. Yes, that's not an error. That is just how utterly superior the Blues have been against the side from Birmingham. Last season's super sub Aggie Beever-Jones scored in the last two encounters, including the opener in the 3-0 triumph last April at Kingsmeadow.
Since their promotion, Villa has conquered almost every league opponent -- except for two. Chelsea and Manchester United remain the elusive challenges yet to be overcome. Below is a look at Sam Kerr hitting a goal milestone at Bescot Stadium.
On this day last year, Sam Kerr scored her 50th WSL goal for Chelsea against Aston Villa. 💪 pic.twitter.com/mi07PJIIs9
— Chelsea FC Women (@ChelseaFCW) April 2, 2024