Naomi Girma on her first Chelsea goal and importance of the FA Cup | OneFootball

Chelsea knocked Manchester United out of the FA Cup on Sunday, thanks to an extra-time winner from Naomi Girma, her first goal in a Chelsea shirt.

The USA international joined Sonia Bompastor’s Blues in January 2025 for a record transfer fee, historically becoming the first women’s player to be sold for over $1 million.

Girma has had a tricky run in with injuries since joining, but the 25-year-old defender has become a mainstay of Bompastor’s backline since returning to full fitness last November.

“I’m just very happy and very excited to have scored my first goal,” Girma said. 

“It was such an important match for us to win going into the international break as well. We wanted to leave on a good note and I’m happy we were able to do that.

“I think we stayed patient for a lot of the game, tried to keep moving the ball, tried to attack where we could and not force the ball down the field. 

“I think that patience paid off and we were able to get ourselves to some pretty good places and put away two goals.

“To have that good feeling going into the international break, keep picking up our confidence, keep advancing in as many competitions as we can. It was really important and a good feeling for us.”

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This fifth round tie was a rematch of last year’s Wembley final, where the Blues beat Marc Skinner’s side 3-0, but Sunday’s 2-1 victory after extra time was a much tighter affair at Kingsmeadow.

Chelsea are the holders of the competition and are aiming for a seventh FA Cup trophy as they head towards the quarter-finals following their victory over Manchester United, who currently sit ahead of them in the Women’s Super League. 

Despite only playing in England for just over a year, Girma understands the heritage of this competition. 

“Getting to experience the first taste of the FA Cup last season and winning at Wembley was special,” she added. 

“As soon as I came in, I just learned how important the competition is and feeling it when I play in the games as well.

“We knew going into this game was really important and we knew we’d have to give our best to get a result.”