FC Twente 1-1 Chelsea: Twente frustrate Chelsea in Champions League opener | OneFootball

Dutch champions FC Twente hosted English champions Chelsea at De Grolsch Veste on Wednesday evening as both sides began their Champions League campaigns.

Danique van Ginkel broke the deadlock for the home side, but her opener was quickly cancelled out when Sandy Baltimore levelled from the spot for The Blues.

As it happened

Chelsea recorded the first chance of the match as Oriane Jean-François’ corner was headed towards the goal by Aggie Beever-Jones before hitting the left post. Just seconds later, FC Twente threatened a chance of their own as a volley across the pitch gave Sophie Proost an advantage against Chelsea’s defence, but her shot at goal was deflected by Ellie Carpenter.

It took Chelsea a while to get into the rhythm of the match, with their attack showing signs of promise but their defending leaving a lot to be desired. Carpenter was quick to respond to Proost’s several attempts at goal, but Millie Bright and Veerle Buurman left the defence exposed at times.

Chelsea came close to scoring in the 18th minute after Maika Hamano delivered a brilliant cross back to Sjoeke Nüsken, who creatively back-heeled the ball towards the goal, only missing by mere inches. The visitors appeared to have finally woken up at this point in the match, creating better attacking chances against a very competitive Twente side.

Twente’s defence was commendable throughout the first half. Sonia Bompastor’s side created several chances in quick succession, but the hosts remained alert to any danger. The Chelsea boss made eight changes from the lineup that faced Manchester United at the weekend, favouring younger and less experienced players. Bompastor’s squad selection suggested she may have underestimated the Dutch champions.

As Chelsea continued to build momentum, Alyssa Thompson weaved through Twente’s defence and shot the ball straight towards goal. Diede Lemey managed to strike the ball away and was immediately supported by her defence who quickly tackled the threat.

A fiery first-half concluded goalless but with plenty of tenacity from both teams.

The second half of the match began with immediate action. Twente’s Leonie Vliek managed to cross the ball towards Proost, who once again managed to drive the ball into Chelsea’s defensive third. She volleyed the ball towards Livia Peng’s goal but her shot was blocked by Chelsea captain Bright.

Chelsea responded immediately as Nüsken and Beever-Jones applied pressure to Twente’s defence once again. Beaver-Jones had another close attempt at goal only to be blocked by Lemey. Nüsken continued to display her talent by striking the ball across to Thompson who struck the ball into the net. However, Chelsea’s celebrations were abruptly ended after the goal was disallowed for offside.

Changes for Chelsea allowed for fresh legs to add to the excitement. Nüsken was replaced by Erin Cuthbert after a clash with Twente player Lynn Groenewegen, whilst Hamano was replaced by Wieke Kaptein.

In the 62nd minute, the opening goal finally came for FC Twente. Captain Danique van Ginkel volleyed from the edge of the box, sending the ball over Bright and into the net.

Chelsea responded quickly. Just two minutes later, Kaptein saw a chance hit the side netting which added to Chelsea’s growing frustration. Play continued in Twente’s defensive third as Chelsea desperately tried to equalise but shots taken were consistently off target by small margins.

Their equaliser eventually came in the 70th minute. Guro Reiten was tripped inside the penalty box by Groenewegen, giving Chelsea a penalty. Sandy Baltimore was Chelsea’s saviour, striking the spot kick straight into the back of the net.

Both teams remained competitive, eager to score the winning goal. Bompastor finally put Sam Kerr on pitch to replace Reiten in an attempt to bolster Chelsea’s attacking line.

Chelsea seemed to have the advantage in the final 20 minutes of the match as they were able to threaten Twente’s defence several times. Kerr almost put Chelsea ahead in the closing ten minutes but her effort was cleared.

The Blues pushed until the end but FC Twente’s defence was resolute as they held on for the draw.

The lineups

TWE: Lemey; Vliek, Knol, Carleer, Tuin; Van Ginkel, Groenewegen; Elberink, Roord, Proost; Ravensbergen