Chelsea crush Man United 3-0 at Wembley to seal historic domestic treble in coach Bompastor's debut season
LONDON, May 19 — Chelsea beat Manchester United 3-0 in the Women's FA Cup final at Wembley yesterday to complete an English domestic treble in French coach Sonia Bompastor's first season in charge.
Sandy Baltimore scored twice, either side of setting up Catarina Macario for the west London side's second.
France international Baltimore opened the scoring from the penalty spot in first-half stoppage time before Macario headed in her free-kick to put the result beyond doubt in the 84th minute.
Baltimore then wrapped up the scoring against United, last season's FA Cup winners, in the first minute of added-on time when she turned Lisa Naalsund before lashing the ball home from close range.
'Invincibles' Chelsea had already been crowned English champions, becoming the first team to remain unbeaten in a 22-game Women's Super League season as they won their sixth successive domestic league title after previously lifting the League Cup.
'To achieve a treble in England, it's difficult to find the right words to describe that,' Bompastor told the BBC.
'It means a lot. I always say I want to make sure in every club I am manager that we have good values, the right values, and I want my players to really enjoy it. We worked hard all through the season. It was not easy and to achieve that, it will be part of history.'
Chelsea's Erin Cuthbert, the player of the match, said of Sunday's success: 'It tops off a brilliant season. I'm so proud of the group.
'A lot of hard work's gone into this. To win in the fashion we did, we were holding on a bit at 1-0 but the second goal puts the game to bed.'
Reflecting on how the side had adapted to Bompastor's methods, she added: 'There's a lot of change but you just have to embrace it.
'She's a manager, she's a winner, as management and as a player, so you've got to respect that. She's done a brilliant job since she's come in. And a treble, what a way to start it!'
Bompastor took over at Chelsea after long-serving and successful manager Emma Hayes left to become the United States' national women's team manager.
But their hopes of a quadruple were scuppered when they lost 8-2 on aggregate to Barcelona in the semi-finals of the Women's Champions League — a tournament they've yet to win for all their domestic triumphs.
At Wembley, in a crowd of over 74,000 featuring new Chelsea women's team investor Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian — as well his tennis champion wife Serena Williams — the Blues dominated the first half but were kept waiting for an opening goal.
It looked as if United would go into the break with the game still goalless but poor defending from Celin Bizet saw her step into Cuthbert and bring the Scotland midfielder down, with referee Stacey Fullicks wasting no time in awarding a penalty.
Baltimore, despite the massed ranks of United fans behind the goal trying to distract her and some mind games from Phallon Tullis-Joyce, coolly sent the United goalkeeper the wrong way from the spot.
An improved United had their chances to equalise early in the second half and even the introduction of England star Ella Toone off the bench could not bring the Cup-holders a goal.
And any hopes of a United fight back were dashed by Macario and Baltimore's late goals. — AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malay Mail
5 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Man City sign Ait-Nouri in £31m deal ahead of Club World Cup squad rebuild
MANCHESTER, June 10 — Manchester City completed the signing of left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri from Wolves on Monday for a reported £31 million (RM178 million). The 24-year-old Algeria international has signed a five-year contract and will be available for the Club World Cup, which begins later this week. Ait-Nouri is expected to be just one of a trio of new City faces for that tournament with deals close to completion for AC Milan midfielder Tijjani Reijnders and Lyon playmaker Rayan Cherki. After missing out on a major trophy in the recently completed season for the first time since 2016/17, City are hoping to bounce back quickly with a major overhaul of Pep Guardiola's squad. They also spent more than £172 million in January on Omar Marmoush, Abdukodir Khusanov, Vitor Reis and Nico Gonzalez. City will face Moroccan side Wydad AC and Emirati club Al Ain before a clash of European heavyweights with Juventus in the group stage, which kicks off on June 14. 'City are one of the biggest clubs in the world and the chance to play for the club is a dream come true,' Ait-Nouri said in a club statement. 'I am also so excited about working with and learning from Pep (Guardiola) and his coaching team and getting to train and play alongside such a world class group of players.' Ait-Nouri spent five years at Wolves, initially arriving on loan from Angers before signing permanently for £14.9m in 2021. He is City's first left-back specialist since Benjamin Mendy, who played his final game for the club almost four years ago. Oleksandr Zinchenko, Joao Cancelo, Nathan Ake, Josko Gvardiol and Nico O'Reilly have been among the players to fill a problem position for Guardiola since. French media report Cherki is on the verge of signing a five-year deal with Guardiola hoping to wrap up the forecast €40 million five-year signing by Tuesday evening in order to field the 21-year-old at the Club World Cup. — AFP
The Sun
6 hours ago
- The Sun
Urawa vow to bring the noise at Club World Cup
THEIR raucous fans are the self-styled bad boys of Japanese football and the team's red shirts, white shorts and black socks bear more than a passing resemblance to Manchester United. But while the fallen English giants won't be at the Club World Cup, Urawa Reds will and are set to be roared on in the United States by more than 5,000 followers. Japan's best-supported club face Inter Milan, River Plate and Monterrey in the opening round when the revamped competition starts on June 14. Urawa is a nondescript suburb about an hour north of Tokyo and the team have been known to draw crowds of over 50,000 to their Saitama Stadium home. Crowd trouble is extremely rare in Japan but Urawa were banned from last season's domestic cup after 'ultra' supporters ripped down barriers and threatened opposition fans. In 2014 they were forced to play a game behind closed doors after fans displayed a racist banner. Supporters say they are misunderstood and are looking forward to hoisting their flags and belting out their songs in front of a global audience. 'People who aren't really interested in football think that we're scary people, but I always tell them that's not true,' Urawa fan Kakeru Inoue told AFP before a recent game. 'I often bring workmates to games to show them what it's really like.' United link Urawa began life as Mitsubishi's company team and their official name of Urawa Red Diamonds is a nod to the industrial behemoth's corporate logo. They were originally called Mitsubishi Urawa Football Club, or MUFC, another link to the Premier League side. Despite having been crowned Asian champions three times, Urawa have only won the domestic J. League once, in 2006 under German former player and 1990 World Cup winner Guido Buchwald. Urawa have appeared at the Club World Cup three times, most recently losing 3-0 to Manchester City in the semi-finals in 2023. Veteran goalkeeper Shusaku Nishikawa says they are proud to be the only Japanese team at the inaugural 32-team Club World Cup. 'The competition will get a lot of attention from around the world and it has a big meaning for us,' he said. 'Who knows whether a Japanese team will play in it again because you need to become Asian champions to earn that right.' 'Ultra culture' Professional football only started in Japan in 1993 but it took root quickly in Urawa. The club signed overseas players including Buchwald and brought through homegrown internationals like Shinji Ono, Makoto Hasebe and current Japan goalkeeper Zion Suzuki. The club's achievements have at times been overshadowed by their fans, who hung a banner reading 'Japanese only' over an entrance to the stands before a 2014 game. The incident earned Urawa the dubious distinction of becoming the first Japanese club to be ordered to play a game behind closed doors. One Urawa fan who has attended games since the J. League began said the club were 'all about ultra culture'. 'That's something you can only get in Urawa,' said the supporter, who gave his name only as Nakaji. 'No other club can match us.' Urawa are coached by Poland's Maciej Skorza, who is back for a second spell after leading the club to the Asian Champions League title in 2023. The Club World Cup is being played in the middle of the J. League season, which runs from February to December. Urawa have made a strong start to their domestic campaign and look poised to challenge for the title, having finished 13th last season. Norwegian defender Marius Hoibraten says the Club World Cup is 'a motivation rather than a distraction'. 'Being able to meet the best teams from other countries is a nice experience for us, everyone is buzzing,' said the 30-year-old, one of the few non-Japanese players in Urawa's squad. 'It's a little bit of unknown water. Everyone is really looking forward to it.'
The Sun
6 hours ago
- The Sun
With shades of Man Utd, Urawa vow to bring the noise at Club World Cup
THEIR raucous fans are the self-styled bad boys of Japanese football and the team's red shirts, white shorts and black socks bear more than a passing resemblance to Manchester United. But while the fallen English giants won't be at the Club World Cup, Urawa Reds will and are set to be roared on in the United States by more than 5,000 followers. Japan's best-supported club face Inter Milan, River Plate and Monterrey in the opening round when the revamped competition starts on June 14. Urawa is a nondescript suburb about an hour north of Tokyo and the team have been known to draw crowds of over 50,000 to their Saitama Stadium home. Crowd trouble is extremely rare in Japan but Urawa were banned from last season's domestic cup after 'ultra' supporters ripped down barriers and threatened opposition fans. In 2014 they were forced to play a game behind closed doors after fans displayed a racist banner. Supporters say they are misunderstood and are looking forward to hoisting their flags and belting out their songs in front of a global audience. 'People who aren't really interested in football think that we're scary people, but I always tell them that's not true,' Urawa fan Kakeru Inoue told AFP before a recent game. 'I often bring workmates to games to show them what it's really like.' United link Urawa began life as Mitsubishi's company team and their official name of Urawa Red Diamonds is a nod to the industrial behemoth's corporate logo. They were originally called Mitsubishi Urawa Football Club, or MUFC, another link to the Premier League side. Despite having been crowned Asian champions three times, Urawa have only won the domestic J. League once, in 2006 under German former player and 1990 World Cup winner Guido Buchwald. Urawa have appeared at the Club World Cup three times, most recently losing 3-0 to Manchester City in the semi-finals in 2023. Veteran goalkeeper Shusaku Nishikawa says they are proud to be the only Japanese team at the inaugural 32-team Club World Cup. 'The competition will get a lot of attention from around the world and it has a big meaning for us,' he said. 'Who knows whether a Japanese team will play in it again because you need to become Asian champions to earn that right.' 'Ultra culture' Professional football only started in Japan in 1993 but it took root quickly in Urawa. The club signed overseas players including Buchwald and brought through homegrown internationals like Shinji Ono, Makoto Hasebe and current Japan goalkeeper Zion Suzuki. The club's achievements have at times been overshadowed by their fans, who hung a banner reading 'Japanese only' over an entrance to the stands before a 2014 game. The incident earned Urawa the dubious distinction of becoming the first Japanese club to be ordered to play a game behind closed doors. One Urawa fan who has attended games since the J. League began said the club were 'all about ultra culture'. 'That's something you can only get in Urawa,' said the supporter, who gave his name only as Nakaji. 'No other club can match us.' Urawa are coached by Poland's Maciej Skorza, who is back for a second spell after leading the club to the Asian Champions League title in 2023. The Club World Cup is being played in the middle of the J. League season, which runs from February to December. Urawa have made a strong start to their domestic campaign and look poised to challenge for the title, having finished 13th last season. Norwegian defender Marius Hoibraten says the Club World Cup is 'a motivation rather than a distraction'. 'Being able to meet the best teams from other countries is a nice experience for us, everyone is buzzing,' said the 30-year-old, one of the few non-Japanese players in Urawa's squad. 'It's a little bit of unknown water. Everyone is really looking forward to it.'
