UWCL: Key St. Pölten star reflects on Chelsea defeat as Sam Kerr marks return in style | OneFootball

English champions Chelsea secured back-to-back victories in the UEFA Women’s Champions League as they defeated a valiant St. Pölten 6-0.

Further celebrations were had by Chelsea fans as Sam Kerr returned from injury and made her first start since 2023. The Australia international bagged herself two goals to contribute to the Blues’ hefty scoreline.

A healthy crowd of 2,431 soaked up the fixture at the NV Arena in St. Pölten, as Laurent Fassotte’s Austrian champions took on arguably one of the best women’s teams ever assembled. The victory leaves Chelsea second in the UWCL table, behind only eight-time champions OL Lyonnes.

Meanwhile, St. Pölten are yet to get their first point on the board and sit bottom of the standings. Roma, Paris Saint-Germain and Benfica are also yet to get off the mark.

Starting XIs

SKN St. Pölten

Schlüter; Ebert; Laino; Elmore; Brunold; Peneau; Nagy; Križaj; Guttman; Ollivier; Klien (C).

Chelsea FC

Peng; Carpenter; Macario; Thompson; Girma; Baltimore; Kaptein; Kaneryd; Kerr; Bronze; Walsh (C).

Early dominance from Chelsea vs St. Pölten

Despite being regulars in the UWCL, the Austrian side were left in no doubt that they were the underdogs in this fixture. Early pressure was comfortably dealt with by St. Pölten for the first ten minutes of the game but Chelsea steadily began to show their class.

Wieke Kaptein slotted home a cross from Ellie Carpenter on 13 minutes to make it 1-0 to the away side. The scoreline remained slim mainly due to the relentless efforts of St. Pölten goalkeeper Carina Schlüter. The German shot-stopper racked up 14 saves by the end of the clash.

The teams went into half-time at 2-0 to Chelsea, after Catarina Macario capitalised on the Austrian defence being higher up the pitch than usual after a promising attack. Macario slotted the ball calmly into the net with her left foot just before the whistle went for the break.

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Sam Kerr excellence

Chelsea didn’t hold back after half-time. Macario converted a penalty after Bela Križaj tripped Alyssa Thompson. Kerr joined in on the scoring action to mark her first goal in 692 days to make it 4-0 from close range.

Lisa Ebert threw herself in front of a Lauren James cross that unfortunately deflected into her own net for an own goal. Finally, with the scoreline 5-0, Kerr wrapped up the game with a headed goal from a neat Niamh Charles cross.

“It always hurts but we have to be more brave”

St. Pölten’s star of the game Schlüter will have introduced herself to many new fans in England after her performance. The shot-stopper was arguably the highlight of the game for many, with athletic save after save to deny some of the world’s best attackers.

“Whenever we have the ball, we have to be more patient and believe in our strengths going forward,” Schlüter reflected after the match. “We start every game as we want to win. I think in the UWCL, Chelsea, Lyon and Atletico Madrid are some of the best teams in the competition and we’ve faced them.”

With Oslo-based side Vålerenga the next opponents for the Austrian champions there’s a positive feeling within the camp.

“In the UWCL, there is no easy team to play. In Oslo, maybe we can get some points there. We will keep on working hard and we will see if there is the opportunity for us to get some goals and some points,” Schlüter said.

Carina Schluter of St Polten reacts during the UEFA Women’s Champions League (Photo by Matt McNulty/Getty Images)

What is next?

Chelsea will travel to Liverpool in the Women’s Super League as they look to climb from second to first in the table. The returns of Kerr and James will no doubt be a catalyst for the side in the coming fixtures.

SKN St. Pölten will travel to Norway to face Vålerenga in the UWCL before returning to Austria to face Red Bull Salzburg in the Frauen Bundesliga.

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