Chelsea Women’s hopes of lifting the Women’s Super League title were dealt a severe blow on Wednesday evening as they suffered a devastating 4-3 defeat to Liverpool, a 92nd-minute goal from Gemma Bonner securing victory for the Reds. But is the title race over, or are the Blues still in with a chance of lifting the title in Emma Hayes’ final season as Chelsea boss?
The WSL has appeared to be a two-horse race for several weeks now, with Hayes’ Chelsea and Gareth Taylor’s Manchester City fighting it out for the title.
Following Wednesday’s defeat, Chelsea sit second in the WSL table on 46 points, with a game in hand on league leaders Manchester City. City currently have 52 points, and have a greater goal difference than their title rivals.
Although title glory is not mathematically impossible for Chelsea it will certainly be a tough task now for the Blues. Hayes’ side will need to rely on Man City dropping points to remain in with any chance of silverware this season.
If City are to drop points in their remaining two fixtures, you would expect it to happen this Sunday, as they take on third-placed Arsenal at the Joie Stadium in what you would expect to be one of City’s toughest fixtures of the season. However, Taylor’s side will be hoping for a win, having come out on top in their last meeting with the Gunners back in February, where they won 1-0 in the FA Cup fifth round, Laia Aleixandri netting the only goal of the game.
City face a slightly easier fixture away to Aston Villa on the final day of the season, in which they will expect three points against a Villa side who have had a disappointing season. Therefore, Chelsea are relying on a big performance from the Gunners to grab three points on Sunday, if Chelsea are to keep their title hopes intact.
But regardless of City’s result, Chelsea will need to be at their best in their remaining fixtures if they are going to secure a 5th consecutive WSL title. The Blues will be expected to secure victory at home to already relegated Bristol City this Sunday, however, Hayes’ side face two very tough trips to FA Cup finalists Tottenham and Manchester United to finish the season.
The former have proven they are capable of testing the bigger clubs, picking up an FA Cup win over Chelsea’s title rivals Man City earlier in the season, while the latter already secured victory over Chelsea this season in the FA Cup semi-final last month.
Winning all of these fixtures will be a tough task for Hayes’ team, who have been far from their best of late.
Back in November, when Hayes announced she would be leaving Chelsea for the United States women's national team next season, the Blues were hoping to secure a historic quadruple.
However, since then, it has been a major collapse for Chelsea. Following their League Cup final loss to Arsenal on March 31, the Blues have suffered semi-final defeats to Manchester United in the FA Cup and Barcelona in the Champions League.
Now, following Wednesday’s league defeat, it looks likely that Chelsea may remain trophyless in Hayes’ final season in charge, failing to add to the 15 trophies she has already won as Chelsea manager.
Following the crushing defeat to Liverpool, even the Chelsea boss admitted the Blues title hopes are now slim, as a defeatist Hayes told the media she believes “the title is done.”
She said: "Of course, mathematically it's not, but I think the title is done. Our job between now and the end of the season is to keep pushing until the end, but I think it will be very difficult.
"It's not to be this year but I'm sure Chelsea will continue to be at the top of the game and it's important that we go out in the best possible way."
Although City look in prime position to go on to lift the trophy, it is worth noting that their top goal scorer and WSL Golden Boot leader, Bunny Shaw, will miss the rest of the season for the Citizens through injury.
The prolific Jamaican striker, who has converted an impressive 21 goals in 18 games this season, suffered a broken foot in City’s recent 5-0 victory over West Ham United. It remains to be seen if her absence will have a significant impact for City in the run in, however, Taylor’s side had no trouble scoring goals in their first game without the striker, putting four past Bristol City.
It is certain to be an exciting end to the season, in which we will see if City can secure the title, or if Hayes’ side will be able to clinch another title win against the odds. Who do you think will be lifting the trophy come May 18?