Blues beat Celtic 3-0 to remain top of their Champions League group - and remain undefeated this season
By Paul Lagan at Stamford Bridge
Chelsea 3 v Celtic 0
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Lucy Bronze, Wieke Kaptein and Eve Perisset scored the goals that put Celtic to the sword in the Champions League tonight, keeping the west Londoner top of Group B, and the Scots firmly rooted at the bottom.
The match was as one-sided as it is possible to get without the deluge of goals, such a disparity in performance suggested.
That will have annoyed Chelsea head coach Sonia Bompastor, but she did make six changes from the side that overcame Manchester City at the weekend, and that can disrupt the rhythm of any team, let alone one that has won all their matches this season.
This was always going to be one of those matches where just winning was required and no injuries sustained – objective achieved.
The watching 300 Celtic fans consigned to the corner of the stadium, did their best to cheer on their players and the Rod Stewart, watching from the posh seats would have hoped for at least a goal from his girls in green and white.
It took Chelsea just one minute and six seconds to open the score and it was an excellent sliced, right-footed volley by Lucy Bronze eight yards out at the far post.
Goalkeeper Kelsey Daugherty got a hand to the ball but could not stop it dropping over the goal-line.
Celtic, tried their hardest to halt the relentless pressure from the Blues and tried the occasional foray up front themselves. Murphy Agnew attempted an audacious long-range effort on 18 minutes. It was not successful at all.
Celtic were their own worst enemies on 25 minutes when they failed to push up from a corner. The ball was whipped straight in from the right and Wieke Kaptein produced a powerful header that zipped past Daugherty to make it 2-0.
Chelsea made one substitution at half-time, Mayra Ramirez replaced Catarina Macario.
The game quickly settled I to the familiar first half pattern – Chelsea in control, Celtic holding deep.
Erin Cuthbert was soon brought on to supplement the midfield – off came Johanna Rytting Kaneryd on 58 minutes.
She was followed by Eve Perisset for Reiten on 70 minutes.
And then it was the turn of debutant Lola Brown and Julia Bartel on 85 minutes - off went Ashley Lawrence and Sjoeke Nusken.
Deep into added time at the end of the game, a |Bronze cross was handled by Kelly Clark and the referee point to the spot – Perisset made no mistake.
And that was that.
Teams: Chelsea: Musovic, Bright, Nusken, Macario, Reiten, Lawrence, Kaptein,Rytting Kaneryd (Jojo), Bronze, Mpome, Jean-Francois
Subs:Hampton, Cox, Ramirez, Cuthbert, Bjorn, Perisset, Bartel, Baltimore, Hamano, Brown
Celtic:Daugherty, Barclais, Gallacher, Smith, Cavanagh, Agnew, McGregor, Clark, Hayes, Ashworth-Clifford, Lawton
Subs: Logan, Rodgers, Carstens, Kerner, Cross, Noonan, Costa, Munoz, McAneny
Referee: Tess Olofsson (Sweden)
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