Lucy Bronze proud of Chelsea youngsters for going ‘toe-to-toe’ with the best in the world | OneFootball

Chelsea held Barcelona to a draw in the Champions League on Thursday night and Lucy Bronze credited the next generation of stars for keeping Barca’s Ballon d’Or winners quiet.

There are a combined five Ballon d’Ors between Aitana Bonmati and Alexia Putellas, but the duo struggled to make an impact at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea hold off strong Barcelona side

It feels like Chelsea never get a result over Barcelona these days, so a draw at the Bridge was a welcome change for the Blues.

Sonia Bompastor’s team put themselves in the drivers seat early thanks to an Ellie Carpenter rocket. The opening goal came shortly after a power outage in the ground that left the Chelsea boss outraged.

The reigning WSL champions were pegged back almost immediately by a Ewa Pajor finish but they proved to be tough to break down after the equaliser.

Having played for both Chelsea and Barca, Lucy Bronze has plenty of experience on both teams and she was impressed by her teammates on Thursday night.

“There were a lot of 20-year-olds in our team who probably look at the likes of Aitana and Alexia and think they’re my idols,” Bronze said.

“Tonight they showed that they can go toe-to-toe with the best players in the world and not be scared. We played our game with confidence and we showed that. They’re always going to be the team to beat in the Champions League.”

The game ended 1-1 after 90 minutes as Barcelona failed to win against their English opponents for the first time since 2023.

“I think overall we were probably on top for more of the game. It’s a good point in the league phase, so it’s a happy camp at the minute.” Bronze concluded.

What next for Chelsea?

A point for Chelsea felt huge against last year’s Champions League finalists but they can’t carry their momentum into the weekend.

The WSL now breaks up for the final international break of the year before a busy Christmas period.

When they return, Chelsea will face Roma and Wolfsburg in their final Champions League group games.

With eight points from a possible 12 it looks like the Blues are set to qualify for the knockouts and it would be a big surprise if they were to drop out of the top 11.

There is a good chance Chelsea and Barcelona will meet in the knockouts for what will be a blockbuster rematch later this season.