Chelsea have secured their place among three Women's Super League clubs advancing to the league phase of the Champions League, thanks to a second-half goal from Keira Walsh in a 1-0 win away at Real Sociedad. The result, achieved at San Sebastián, built on the London club's commanding advantage from the first leg, where they had won 5-2 despite falling behind early on.
Sonia Bompastor, back in charge after completing a one-match suspension from the first leg, rotated her squad significantly for the return fixture, making four changes with the club's WSL opener against Aston Villa on the horizon. Veerle Buurman, who scored in the first leg, was left among the substitutes, alongside Katie McCabe, Sjoeke Nüsken and Alyssa Thompson. Lexi Potter, the 20-year-old midfielder who netted in her first league start for Chelsea during a 2-1 victory over Brighton back in March, was handed a starting role for the trip to Spain.
Real Sociedad, meanwhile, arrived at the second leg under new management. Arturo Ruiz, who had overseen the first-leg defeat, departed the club in the interim to take charge of Brighton following the surprise exit of Dario Vidosic. Gorka Álvarez, previously in charge of Real Sociedad's reserve side for three seasons and an assistant with SD Eibar's women's team, was swiftly appointed to steer the Spanish side through a demanding week. His first match in charge, a Liga F opener against Logroño, ended in a 2-0 defeat, adding to the pressure ahead of facing Chelsea again.
Despite the daunting task of overturning a three-goal deficit, Real Sociedad put in a resilient display, frustrating Chelsea's attempts to build a rhythm. The hosts organized well defensively, echoing their approach from the opening period of the first leg, and kept Bompastor's side without a breakthrough until the 54th minute.
Chelsea struggled early to fashion clear-cut opportunities. Ellie Carpenter, deployed in a more advanced role ahead of Lucy Bronze on the right flank, proved to be the visitors' most dangerous outlet, though her deliveries into the box went unconverted. Walsh herself had a tame first-half effort saved comfortably by goalkeeper Julia Arrula, while Aggie Beever-Jones also failed to test the keeper with a shot that lacked precision.
The deadlock was finally broken when Walsh capitalized on a corner, sweeping the ball in to effectively end any faint hopes of a Real Sociedad comeback. The goal ensured Chelsea's passage without further alarm, even though the overall performance across both legs lacked the fluency Bompastor would have wanted.
With qualification secured, Chelsea used the remainder of the match to hand debuts to two of their new signings, Nelly Las and Giulia Dragoni, while also giving valuable minutes to highly rated 17-year-old Chloe Sarwie. The chance to test fresh faces and rotate the squad will be seen as a bonus, coming just days before Chelsea begin their WSL title defense at home to Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge.
For Real Sociedad, the tie represented a tough introduction for Álvarez, who now shifts his focus to preparing his side for a campaign in the Europa League after their Champions League qualifying exit. The result also underlines an eventful few days in coaching circles, with Brighton's swift appointment of Ruiz adding intrigue to the WSL's upcoming season, in which Chelsea remain one of three English clubs progressing to Europe's top continental competition.
Based on reporting from The Guardian.