Under the bright lights of Stamford Bridge, Sandy Baltimore delivered a performance that will be remembered for seasons to come. On a night where Chelsea needed inspiration, the French wing-back provided it in spectacular fashion, leading her side to a thrilling first-half comeback against Manchester City.
The City fans made their presence felt early, chanting “Come on City” as their side attempted to settle into the game. But Chelsea’s relentless high press made life difficult for City’s young goalkeeper, Khiara Keating, who looked uncomfortable playing out from the back. It wasn’t long before Chelsea’s attacking intensity began to overwhelm their opponents.
City struggled to hold up the ball, with Mary Fowler being physically dominated by Millie Bright on several occasions. The signs of Chelsea’s dominance were there, but it was Baltimore who truly sparked the comeback. When a clever one-two between Lucy Bronze and Mayra Ramírez led to an outside-of-the-boot strike that rattled the far post, Baltimore reacted first, lighting a rocket into the top right corner of City’s net. Stamford Bridge erupted. 1-0 Chelsea. The comeback was on.
Chelsea continued to impose their physicality on the game, winning duels across the pitch. With the aggregate score now at 2-1, the belief inside Stamford Bridge mirrored the feeling Arsenal had the night before. This could be Chelsea’s night.
Baltimore wasn’t done. Just before the half-hour mark, she delivered a pinpoint in-swinging corner that found the head of Björn, with Erin Cuthbert smartly positioning herself to block Keating’s vision. The ball hit the back of the net. Chelsea were level on aggregate. Stamford Bridge was roaring.
The onslaught continued. Lauren James, in tandem with Baltimore, tormented City on several occasions with pure, unrelenting dominance. James, situated on the wide left, dropped deep to build attacks with intricate passing and fifa-street-like ball mastery.
Two minutes before the close of the half James in space set the ball back to with a beautifully weighted reverse pass to Ramírez to make it three before halftime, Chelsea fans erupted into chants of “We want four!”
By the halftime whistle, City were reeling, unable to match Chelsea’s intensity. It was actually at this point that I decided to shut my laptop and enjoy the rest of the game.
Chelsea finished the game 3-0 winner 3-2 on aggregate. City made changes in the second half and tactically moved Fowler out to the wing with Miedema as a No. 9 but it was to no avail.
