Lyon School with Bompastor and the memory of legends as an asset for Chelsea in the fight for the Champions League | Relief

London, Stamford Bridge and Chelsea are preparing for their Champions League debut. They do so against old friends Real Madrid and with a new asset heading the bench in Sonia Bompastor. The French technician knows very well what it means to compete in Europe because she She has already won the trophy twice as a Lyon player and once as a coach. From the school of the almighty French national team, eight-time European champions, she left for the position of academy director in 2013 until 2021, when she took charge of the first team.

That’s why Chelsea decided that she – also thanks to the experience of Lucy Bronze – would make a breakthrough in the Champions League and take on as coach a woman who had left her mark on history. one of the most successful teams in the world. Moreover, when they take to the pitch, they will remember the Champions League final they lost as Lyon captain to Wolfsburg (0-1) at the same stadium, Stamford Bridge, eleven years ago.

She will face a new opponent – Real Madrid, a team she has not yet faced. Despite this and last year’s result, when the white team finished last in a group eventually topped by Chelsea, Beaupastor wanted to tone down the euphoria: “You can’t underestimate any team”. He also made it clear that he had studied his opponent. “I know that they are one of the most competitive teams in the Spanish league and that they have a lot of talented players. They like to have the ball. It will be a difficult game and we are ready for it.” – he assured at the previous press conference.

Legacy of legends: “I felt like I was playing in the Champions League”

This will also be a special match for Sjoque Nusken, who has precious memories of last season’s match in Valdebebas, where he made his Champions League debut at the age of 22.. On the team was Ann-Katrin Berger, a former goalkeeper and captain of the team that moved to Gotham of the American League in the summer. Being one of the veterans, she also wanted to leave her legacy among the players. It was in Valdebebas, before the start of the game that ended 2-2 and in controversy after a penalty awarded to Athena, who was off the line, when the goalkeeper approached Nusken, acting as a leader among the young women.

There he felt a responsibility to play for Chelsea and compete in Europe. “Ann told me I was playing in the majors now. She was right. “I really felt like I was playing for Chelsea in the Champions League and it was a dream come true.” admitted the German player. “I felt the same way when we took the team photo on the field. I ran back to my position and said to myself: “Well, now I’m going to start in the Champions League.” It was a good feeling,” he added. Nusken, who has now become a mainstay in the team blue.

“Negative break” to take care of players’ health

Chelsea last played on September 27 against Crystal Palace. The match ended with a convincing score of 7:0 and six different goals. Sonia Bompastor’s side have had ten days to focus on the Champions League match after the match they were due to play on Sunday against Manchester United – two days before the match against Madrid – was postponed. and that Kingsmeadow was sold out. This affected not only the fans of both teams, but also the pace of the Blues’ competition.

“We were disappointed, both the players and the staff,” Bompastor said at a press conference ahead of the European tournament. “Everyone must understand that we had to play, that we had very good team dynamics and Not being able to play this weekend changed everything about the game against Real Madrid. “Now we’ve been out of competition for ten days, which is a whole different ballgame.”– he said.

Chelsea worked with UEFA and the WSL to find solutions, always putting the safety and health of the players first, but they were unable to reach an agreement and the match eventually had to be postponed.: “The decision is not good and not good for all English clubs that participate in the Champions League. The league is a professional league, they need to know the rules, and I told the league what I thought. That’s enough for me. It’s good that they have our opinion. We should be proud that there are three English clubs participating in the Champions League this year and the decisions that are made throughout the league season should help English clubs do that. . compete in the Champions League.”