Football Review | Twente 1 - 1 Chelsea

Baltimore penalty saves Chelsea from opening game defeat

Chelsea were forced to come from behind to salvage a draw against Dutch champions Twente in their Women’s Champions League opener.

Author | Lauren W

Stadium | De Grolsch Veste

View from the stands

Sonia Bompastor’s side had scored nine goals against the same opponents in last season’s group stage, yet despite dominating at De Grolsch Veste, they found themselves behind when Danique van Ginkel struck in the 63rd minute.

The Blues, who made seven changes from the team that drew 1-1 with Manchester United on Friday, levelled eight minutes later to avoid their first defeat in any competition since April.

One point gained or two dropped for Chelsea?

Pre-match scenes

Chelsea controlled much of the first half, enjoying 68% possession, but struggled to turn their dominance into clear chances. Twente came closest to opening the scoring early on when Leonie Vliek opted to square the ball to Jaimy Ravensbergen instead of shooting after Chelsea’s defence was left exposed.

After the interval, Alyssa Thompson had a close-range finish ruled out for offside before Van Ginkel put Twente ahead with a superb curling effort into the top corner. But their advantage was short-lived, as Lynn Groenewegen’s foul on Guro Reiten gave Chelsea a lifeline. Baltimore stepped up to calmly send the penalty into the bottom corner and rescue a point for the visitors.

It then felt like Chelsea would eventually find an winner, but despite a raft of late attacks, the Twente defence held firm as they ground out what was probably a deserved point.

Best Chelsea reaction

Laura Cowen made the trip over and she asked: "Do we need to question the manager? Seems crazy given the success we had last season but we do seem to have problems in this competitive."

Sebastian was less negative and more realistic, he added: "Not a particularly great performance from us but we didn't lose. These away trips can often be difficult at the start of a campaign. Onwards and upwards."

Next up for Chelsea

They return to Women's Super League action on Sunday lunchtime when they will take on Tottenham Hotspur in a London derby at Kingsmeadow.