Chelsea put five past Tottenham to win consecutive London derbies | OneFootball

Chelsea beat Tottenham by a convincing 5-2 scoreline at Kingsmeadow on Sunday night to paint London blue for the second time in as many league games.

Chelsea head coach Sonia Bompastor made history on the night, becoming just the third manager in WSL history to win her first four matches, spoiling the homecomings of former Chelsea players Bethany England and Drew Spence, who both now ply their trade in North London.

Misery compounds for Robert Vilahamn’s Tottenham, who have now lost three consecutive matches after facing defeats at the hands of Manchester United and LIverpool in previous matches.

Perhaps spurred on by louder-than-usual cries of ‘we hate Tottenham’ during the ritual pre-match listen of The Liquidator, it would be Chelsea who opened the scoring as Johanna Rytting Kaneryd picked Amanda Nilden’s pocket before driving to the byline to pull a cross back to Maika Hamano, the Japan international smashing home from close range.

Despite scoring early, it was far from a comfortable start for Chelsea. Tottenham started the match with gusto, attacking with pace to keep the Blues pinned back. Some sloppy mistakes in possession also prevented the hosts from settling.

Spurs would equalise with 20 minutes on the clock, as a wayward Nilden cross floated in towards Hannah Hampton’s goal, the Chelsea keeper dropping her claim on the line before a goal was controversially awarded by the linesman, acting in lieu of goal line technology, much to the chagrin of the home support.

Hampton vehemently protested the decision, earning a booking for her trouble.

With the score tied at 1-1, the chaotic state of play continued. Shots flew from all corners, while neither side seemed interested in maintaining possession for any period of time. Derby day emotion was clear, as seven fouls and two bookings were recorded in the opening half hour.

The match’s clumsy and chaotic nature was again centre stage as Nilden made cosmic amends for her earlier accidental goal, heading a corner into her own net shortly before halftime to hand the lead back to the hosts.

Chelsea’s grip on the match tightened somewhat in the second half, but there were still cracks in the mortar. While the Blues enjoyed more consistent possession, it would be Spurs with the first clear-cut chance of the half, as Hampton was forced into a fingertip save at the near post.

In terms of momentum, Chelsea had begun to stamp some authority on the match. Some tidy interplay saw Reiten come close to extending Chelsea’s lead just past the hour mark but her shot went just wide.

Spurs had attacking spells of their own, but they were mostly neutered by Kadeisha Buchanan, who enjoyed another imposing performance as she fast cements herself as Bompastor’s go-to partner for Millie Bright.

With 20 minutes remaining, Rytting Kaneryd grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck. She took the net off with a flying volley hit across goal to cement Chelsea’s win and send the home fans into raptures, before dribbling the length of the pitch to win a penalty. Guro Reiten would hit the post from the spot before a fortunate rebound was fired home by Sandy Baltimore for Chelsea’s final goal of the night.

Eveliina Summanen would score emphatically from a well-placed free kick with five minutes of normal time remaining, but it would be little more than consolation for the Lilywhites as Rytting Kaneryd added another equally emphatic goal to the board minutes later.

With five goals scored on the night, Chelsea move into second place in the table, one point off top spot Manchester City with a game in hand and a comfortable goal difference advantage.

Lineups

CHE: Hampton, Bright (C), Nusken, Ramirez, Cuthbert, Reiten, Baltimore, Rytting Kaneryd, Bronze, Hamano, Buchanan

TOT: Spencer, Bartrip, Nilden, Naz, England (C), Vinberg, Hunt, Ahtinen, Spence, Summanen, Neville

Featured image credit: Harry Murphy/Getty Images via One Football