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As the saying goes – slow and steady wins the race. While ‘slow and steady’ is often balked at in football, Sonia Bompastor has already won a fair few races since her arrival at Chelsea Women, while taking her time to implement her playing style.
Coming in and instantly trying to change a squad and culture honed over 12 successful years by her predecessor, Emma Hayes, could have ended in disaster.
Instead, Bompastor has patiently moulded the team into her image. For example, she began to used a back three towards the end of last season, moving away from her previously deployed back four, as Chelsea stormed to a domestic treble.
Hayes was known for her tactical fluidity, but Bompastor prefers a back three in her own footballing philosophy and has continued with it this term. It was something she was already looking to introduce when she arrived at Chelsea last summer, while being productive at both ends of the pitch.
Ahead of Saturday’s WSL showdown with Arsenal Women, Bompastor exclusively told Sky Sports: “It was planned from the beginning. It’s part of who I am as a manager, my philosophy, my vision.
“I just needed to make sure players are on board with that and it takes time. People think it can be easy, but it’s not. We have people coming from different countries, not always speaking the same language, which can sometimes be a challenge.
“You need to make sure everyone understands the same and when you think about it, having 11 players who understand the same thing in the same moment of the game, it’s a big challenge.
“So it’s a lot of work in training sessions, a lot of video also for the players to understand what we want to achieve. The players are smart, they do understand what we want to achieve, so they contribute themselves towards that.
“We’re probably not yet where I want us to be, we probably never will because, again, it’s really difficult, but I’m quite happy with what we are achieving so far.
“The mentality in this team is great. What we are doing on the pitch, we always find a way to win.
Saturday 8th November 11:30am
Kick off 12:00pm
“People sometimes comment a lot on our way to play, but when I analyse the games and I look at the statistics, most of the time, we are dominant in many ways.
“As much as people want us to probably have the ball most of the time and everything, we always try to be in control, we always try to be dominant.
“The most important thing in football is to be efficient and clinical, so if we are able to do that, I’m happy.”
That applies to both end of the pitch. Chelsea have conceded just three goals this season – the fewest in the WSL – and are yet to lose in the league. In fact, they have never lost a domestic match under Bompastor.
If the Blues avoid defeat at the Emirates, they will match their own record of 33 WSL games unbeaten, although this is a streak Bompastor is not interested in.
“I think this unbeaten run is more for the media to comment on,” she reflected. “For us, a new season, we are starting from zero. We haven’t done anything yet, except winning some important games in the league.
“For that reason, we are not really focusing on that as a team and even less as a manager. Every game is important. We are taking it game-by-game and that’s what matters the most for us.”
The trip to Arsenal could again see Ellie Carpenter and Lucy Bronze line up on Chelsea’s right. When the Australian signed in the summer, there were questions over how the two would be used together.
But in Saturday’s 2-0 win against London City Lionesses, the pair played together for the first time to fine effect – Carpenter even scored her first Chelsea goal.
“Lucy and Ellie are two great athletes,” Bompastor said of her right-sided pair. “I don’t want to have to make a choice between them when they are both performing.
“Maybe in the future I will have to do that, depending on how we play with a back three or four, but at the same time if I think both can fit together and can play together, it will be great.
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Ellie Carpenter opens the scoring for Chelsea against London City Lionesses in just over five minutes.
“Both have a lot of experience at international level. They have different profiles, different qualities and having them playing together gives a lot of power to the team. They know how to defend, they know how to attack together, so it’s a big strength for us.”
Having two players of such quality vying for similar starting spots further highlights the depth Bompastor has at her disposal. Her matchday squads are full of international experience and multi-trophy winners.
This season, Chelsea have had eight different WSL goalscorers and made the most changes to their starting XIs (18) as they bid to compete on multiple fronts once again.
“It’s really crucial,” Bompastor said of her squad. “When you are the Chelsea manager, you have to rotate your squad and you have a lot of quality and depth.
“You need to make sure you maintain the right balance for people to feel they are part of the success. For that reason, it’s really important for me as a manager to give the opportunity to everyone to perform and to be involved.
“When you have to play every three days, three games a week, that’s really important to have some fresh legs. If you don’t have the depth, it’s really difficult to match your ambitions.”
While rotation is key, one player who has been a stalwart of Chelsea XIs for many years is Millie Bright. Should she feature against Arsenal, she will match Jordan Nobbs’ WSL record of 210 appearances.
Against Liverpool next Sunday, live on Sky Sports, the Blues captain could surpass her former England team-mate and make history.
“It just shows how good she’s been playing at the highest level for so long,” Bompastor said of her defender. “She’s been part of this club for so long, she’s part of the base and the foundations and she’s already brought a lot to this club.
“When I was the Lyon manager, I was always impressed with Millie, the player she was on the pitch, but joining Chelsea, I’m even more impressed because she’s a good player, but also a good person.
“It’s really important for me also to have the opportunity to work with athletes who have the quality on the pitch and outside if it. Every day, she shows good values and sets the example for others. It’s lovely to work with someone who has this mentality.
“Every time we have the conversation, she always starts to say, ‘I want to make sure I’ll be available to play the game on the weekend’ or even when we play every three days. Football for her is everything and I think she gives everything for football.
“I’m really pleased to have her as the captain of the team and to have her in my squad. It’s a great achievement for her and well deserved because she puts a lot of hard work in every day.”
Watch Arenal Women vs Chelsea Women live on Sky Sports on Saturday from 11.30am; kick-off 12pm.
