Emma Hayes' departure hasn't hindered the Blues, with Sonia Bompastor only building on the strong foundations laid by the United States boss
When Emma Hayes brought her iconic 12-year stint as Chelsea boss to an end last summer, it was perfectly natural for fans to be a little anxious about a new era. While the squad and club certainly felt in a good place for her successor, to follow in the footsteps of such a legendary figure and one of the best managers the women's game has ever seen was not going to be straight-forward for any candidate. And yet, the events of the last six months mean any nervous feelings have dissipated remarkably fast.
With nine games of the Women's Super League season remaining, the Blues are seven points clear at the top of the table and still yet to lose under new head coach Sonia Bompastor, putting them firmly on course for a sixth-successive league title while success on all four fronts remains possible.
If that wasn't a marvellous position to be in already, Chelsea only strengthened it in the January transfer window, making an almighty splash by signing two genuinely world-class footballers, in American centre-back Naomi Girma and England midfielder Keira Walsh. The prices of those acquisitions, at £890,000 ($1.1 million) and £457,000 ($563,000), respectively, highlighted the Blues' ambition, with no English rival coming close in this regard. Both deals are among the top five most expensive in the history of women's football.
Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United have all tried and failed to dethrone this winning machine in the past five years; what chance do any of them have of succeeding in the next half-decade, as Chelsea continue to only get stronger?
GettyAdjusting to change
There was some speculation about Chelsea having a transitional season this term, given all the change taking place in west London. As well as Hayes' departure, stalwarts like Fran Kirby, Maren Mjelde, Jess Carter, Ann-Katrin Berger and Melanie Leupolz all moved on, meaning a lot of winning experience and players with strong personalities and mentalities vacated the dressing room.
But what Hayes built was built to last. It was built over a long period, and the time and effort put into that was never going to fall apart in the space of one summer. Perhaps there might be a small adjustment period, especially with Bompastor having a new environment to adapt to, like many of her signings. Perhaps there would be a chance for the rest of the WSL's 'big four' to have a real go at them in the title race. But Chelsea were always going to be up there still – that was the minimum expectation.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesUnbeatable start
The ease at which Bompastor is moving closer towards what would be her first WSL triumph, then, is extremely impressive. She's taken the challenge of battling on four fronts in her stride, rotating well to balance things out and maintain a remarkable unbeaten streak that now stands at 21 games and spans the entire season to date.
Chelsea have had some really eye-catching displays in that time, but they've also done that admirable thing of winning (or not losing) when not playing particularly well. That's the mark of a champion that was evident throughout Hayes' reign and has continued under Bompastor, who knows all about winning from her all-conquering days at Lyon.
So far, it has put them seven points clear at the top of the WSL table, into the Champions League quarter-finals, the FA Cup fifth round and preparing for a League Cup semi-final, in which they face West Ham on Wednesday.
Getty ImagesForward-planning
That's all good for the now – and there's a lot about it that is good for the future, too. After all, Walsh has just signed a four-and-a-half-year contract, aged 27. She's already one of the best midfielders in the world, and now her prime years are going to come in a Chelsea shirt. In Girma, they've secured the services of one of the best centre-backs in the world, too, for the same length of time. She's still only 24 years old and is guaranteed to get better.
Chelsea were always good at forward-planning, at signing players in their early twenties who could become stalwarts in the XI for years to come. Hayes did it with many rising stars in the English game, such as Millie Bright and Kirby, while also identifying foreign talents like Guro Reiten and Ji So-yun to do similar.
Now, as Bright prepares to celebrate her 32nd birthday this summer, it looks like Chelsea have that forward-planning nailed down in an extremely important position and for an extremely important player, who is by no means done yet. This was a key strength under Hayes and looks set to continue under Bompastor.
Getty ImagesTalent spotting
Underneath all of that star power, alongside the Walshs and the Girmas, and the likes of Sam Kerr and Lauren James, there is also a pipeline of young prospects. Hayes' final few years at Chelsea saw a significant shift towards recruiting teenage talents who could develop into stars in due course. In her last season in charge, one of those, Maika Hamano, came up with some huge contributions to help deliver a fifth-successive WSL title. This year, Wieke Kaptein, signed by Hayes, has been an important figure under Bompastor.
There are plenty more looking to follow in their footsteps, such as PSV defender Veerle Buurman, who recently scored on her senior Netherlands debut, and Bompastor, as the former manager of Lyon's academy, is well-placed to continue the work of the last few years.
