Ramirez strike sets up Chelsea’s 2-1 League Cup final victory over tough Man City
By Paul Lagan at Pride Park
Chelsea v Manchester City
League Cup Final
14,187
Mayra Ramirez scored Chelsea's opener, but it was an own goal by City's Yui Hasegawa that decided the League Cup final, at Pride Park with the west Londoners just about deserved winners 2-1.
It's the first of four encounters in two weeks as the Champions League and WSL beckon, but the first piece of silverware for head coach Sonia Bompastor will be sweet.
The Blues are undefeated this season, but City took them close.
This was not a defence-minded set-up by City, this was a 'we are going to give it a go' and it almost worked as they inched the possession stakes, but were not quite as clinical as they needed to be up front. To be fair, neither were Chelsea and that's why this game went to the wire.
City started the brighter, getting into their possession game early. The Blues looked a tad out of sort, struggling to get hold of the ball and keeping it when they did.
Having said that, with their first attack they scored – on eight minutes.
It started at the back from Hannah Hampton who kicked the ball out to Sandy Baltimore, who raced up the left, passed the ball out to Catarina Macario, who then fed Mayra Ramirez. The Colombia striker had two bites of the cherry but slotted home on the second occasion.
But then VAR intervened for a possible offside. Which was rightly dismissed in a minute.
Bunny Shaw who took a hefty whack from Millie Bright early on, always looked like the player who could cause the Chelsea defence the most problems. Her power and pace, a constant thorn.
But it was Leila Ouahabi, who forced Hampton into a smart save to her right to tip away a left-footed, goal-bound effort on 20 minutes.
Lauren James had a shot following a quick counter on 25 minutes, but Ayaka Yamashita was well placed to block the angled shot.
Ramirez should have scored when she was sent clear on 29 minutes. She sprinted the length of the City half, went round Yamashita but went too wide and cut her shot into the side netting.
Baltimore produced a brilliant block on the six yard line to deny Shaw aon 36 minutes as City cranked up the pressure.
There were no changes by either side at half-time.
Lucy Bronze thought she had a penalty on 49 minutes but was adjudged by referee Emily Heaslip to have dived and she got a yellow card.
Two good chances fell to Chelsea on 60 minutes, firstly Johanna Rytting Kaneryd had a shot blocked by Yamashita then Erin Cuthbert floated over the crossbar a half volley.
City got their equaliser, on 65 minutes, not from brilliant set-up play but from Chelsea not closing down Aoba Fujino, who just kept on running and then let fly with a venomous right-footer that smashed past Hampton.
Hampton then produced a fantastic block to deny Shaw after Bronze lost possession of the ball just outside the Blues' penalty area.
Vivianne Miedema was next to knock on the Chelsea door with a low, left-footer. Again Hampton was equal to the task.
City were in complete control at this point as Chelsea started to look tired.
This prompted Bompastor to bring on Aggie Beever-Jones and Maika Hamano, on 74 minutes – off went Macario, and Rytting Kaneryd.
The changes had an intimidate effect, firstly Hamano tried an audacious 50 yard shot which Yamashita easily plucked out of the air, but then on 78 minutes Hamano was running in to latch on to a Ramirez right byline cross, and the ball was deflected into her own net by Yuri Hasegawa from close range.
That was the end for Ramirez who was replaced by Wieke Kaptein.
Next on was Niamh Charles for Baltimore with two minutes left on the clock.
Three minutes were added, but by this time City were gone and the Blues knew they had won.
Teams: Chelsea: Hampton, Bronze, Bright, Bjorn, Baltimore, Nusken, Cuthbert, Kaneryd (JoJo) Macario, James, Ramirez
Subs: Spencer, Lawrence, Charles, Jean-Francois, Brown,Kaptein, Hamano, Beever-Jones, Fishel
Man City: Yamashita, Casparij, Prior, Aleixandri, Ouahabi, Hasegawa, Miedema, Roord, Fujino, Fowler, Shaw
Subs: Keating, Layzell Coombs Wienroither, Kerolin, Park, Blindkilde, Brown, Oyama, Murphy
Referee: Emily Heaslip
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