Chelsea forward Aggie Beever-Jones believes the Blues are in "great hands" under new coach Sonia Bompastor as she looks to build on Emma Hayes' legacy.
Hayes ended her glittering 12-year reign in West London in May, having overseen her seventh Women's Super League title success, five of which have come in the last five seasons.
Hayes departed to take up an offer to manage the United States' national team, and she immediately led them to a record-extending fifth gold medal at the Paris Olympic Games.
Chelsea moved swiftly to replace Hayes with former Lyon boss Bompastor, who won three league titles and the 2021-22 Champions League crown in three years with the French giants.
The 2024-25 WSL season begins on Friday, September 20, with Bompastor's team playing host to Aston Villa in the first match of the campaign, and Beever-Jones is excited to get going.
Speaking at the Barclays WSL's 2024-25 season launch media day, Beever-Jones told Stats Perform: "I think with Emma, the legacy she created at Chelsea speaks for itself.
"She transformed it into one of the best clubs in the world and I think she's obviously left it in great hands with Sonia now.
"It's up to Sonia and Cami to put their own flair on the Chelsea way. I think it's going to be an exciting year for sure, change is good, and we'll be losing Emma, but we've got Sonia now, and we're just so excited for the season to start."
Hayes also won five FA Cups and two League Cups during her time with Chelsea, but the Champions League trophy eluded her, coming closest when they were runners-up to Barcelona in 2020-21.
Bompastor is something of a European specialist, winning the Champions League twice as a player and once as a coach, and Beever-Jones hopes her know-how can get the Blues over the line.
"That is the aim," she said. "Chelsea haven't done it before and to have Sonia, who has won it many times, bringing that freshness and, obviously, players like Lucy Bronze giving her experience...
"To be fighting for four competitions again, that's what we want to be doing this year.
"I feel Chelsea are the club that can do it and yeah hopefully this time next year I'll be sitting here with a Champions League medal.
"I think with Sonia, her history of what she's won as a player and a coach speaks for itself.
"She was the first player to win it as a Champions League and then do it as a coach. It's a big hole to fill, but I think Sonia and everyone she's brought in are the right people to fill that hole.
"It's absolute credit to what Emma did for Chelsea and I think it was the right time for her to leave. We're delighted for her to go and win a gold medal for America, and we're obviously still in contact.
"I'm super excited for this new era of Chelsea and to avoid that drop-off, I think we're in the right hands to do that, and I'm sure that drop-off won't happen."
Phallon Tullis-Joyce is excited by the job Emma Hayes has already done with the United States and predicts she will have even more success in the role.
Hayes left Chelsea after 12 years in charge in May, going out on a high after leading the Blues to a fifth consecutive Women's Super League triumph on the final day of last season.
It was her seventh title overall with Chelsea, also winning five FA Cups and two League Cups, as well as leading the team to the Champions League final in 2020-21.
Hayes began her tenure as the USA boss in May and helped the team to a record-extending fifth Olympic gold in Paris, as an undefeated tournament ended with a 1-0 win over Brazil in August.
Having made such a bright start to life with the USWNT, Tullis-Joyce, who has never played for her national team, is expecting great things from Hayes.
Speaking at the Barclays WSL's 2024-25 season launch media day, the goalkeeper told Stats Perform: "I think that's incredible for US soccer to have such a notable coach.
"Everyone has seen how great she's done in this league alone, and I'm excited to see what she does with the US Women's National Team.
"She's already done an amazing job, so I can imagine she's going to do so many more great things for time to come, especially for the younger generations."
One of the players who did not feature at the Olympics for the USWNT was Alex Morgan, who recently announced her retirement from football.
Morgan, regarded as a USA legend, is one of the most decorated players in the history of the team, winning back-to-back World Cups in 2015 and 2019 and clinching Olympic gold in 2012.
She is ninth on the all-time appearance charts having earned 224 caps, and since her international debut in March 2010, no player has been involved in more goals for the USA than her (175, 123 goals, 52 assists).
Tullis-Joyce was full of praise for the former striker and explained how she drove her to improve after coming up against her.
"Just massive respect for Alex Morgan, she's definitely a player that I've looked up to as an American," Tullis-Joyce said.
"She was one of the ones that we saw on the national team constantly just shredding goalkeepers left and right.
"Honestly, I'm learning from her how to protect my goal a little bit better. I had the fortunate opportunity to play against her several times.
"Honestly, she just seems like such a great person. And I wish her all the best in her retirement, especially after what she's done for women's football."
Phallon Tullis-Joyce believes learning from Mary Earps during her time at Manchester United has her well-placed to step up as the Red Devils' new number one.
Earps, who spent five seasons with United, joined Paris Saint-Germain in July upon the expiry of her contract at the Women's Super League side.
During her time with the Red Devils, she made 102 appearances in all competitions, keeping 46 clean sheets in the WSL in that time.
The 31-year-old scooped the Golden Glove in the 2022-23 campaign, while also helping United lift the Women's FA Cup in her final season with the club.
Tullis-Joyce spent just one year alongside Earps after arriving from the Seattle Reign last year, with all four of her appearances coming in the League Cup.
But speaking at the Barclays WSL's 2024-25 season launch media day, the American told Stats Perform her time with Earps has her well-prepared for this season.
"I was fortunate enough to train with Mary for an entire season, learn from her, learn from the staff as well," Tullis-Joyce said.
"Four of us together just being able to hold a high standard has already helped me in that preparation for this season."
Head coach Marc Skinner is backing Tullis-Joyce to fill the seismic gap left by Earps, a statement that filled the American with confidence.
"Yeah, definitely very, very grateful to our staff," Tullis-Joyce started.
"I mean, right from the start, when I got there, they were very clear about their intentions and where I was at and where they wanted to see me progress to.
"I'm just super happy to be with the squad."
United are looking to improve on an underwhelming campaign last year, finishing fifth and 15 points adrift of the Champions League qualification places.
Only Manchester City (15), Chelsea (18), Arsenal (20) and Liverpool (28) conceded less than United's 32 goals in the league, but their inconsistent results proved costly.
Tullis-Joyce acknowledged their showing last term fell below the mark, but highlighted the Red Devils' FA Cup success as a solid foundation to build on this season.
"We're taking this step by step," Tullis-Joyce said.
"These players have been grinding it out during this pre-season.
"We're pushing our limits, and we obviously have our sights set on the absolute best that we can perform as a squad and that's where we're at for the season."
Manchester City go into the new Women’s Super League season having made what could be the acquisition of the summer, and they haven’t even had to spend a penny to get their player.
Vivianne Miedema appeared 172 times in all competitions for Arsenal, netting a staggering 125 goals and providing 50 assists.
The Netherlands international set the WSL alight in her seven years with the Gunners and holds the all-time record for the most goals in the competition, with 80.
Since joining from Bayern Munich in 2017 there has been no stopping her and, as she begins her new chapter with City, she will have the opportunity to form what could be one of the greatest partnerships the WSL has witnessed.
The Citizens thought last season might have been their year to finally clinch their first WSL title since 2016, only to lose it on the final day on goal difference as Chelsea provided Emma Hayes with a triumphant send-off.
Gareth Taylor has a potentially devastating attacking lineup on his hands as City look to go one better in 2024-25.
With record breakers Khadija “Bunny” Shaw and Miedema paired together, he may have found the piece of the puzzle they have been missing.
A record-breaking rise
Shaw has also been a WSL revelation since joining Man City in 2021, surpassing all expectations with her meteoric rise to becoming the club’s all-time leading scorer with 72 goals.
Shaw has scored a remarkable 50 goals in just 57 WSL appearances, netting once every 81 minutes on average. The Jamaica star is a ruthless finisher, outperforming her expected goals (xG) figures by almost 15 goals during her time in the WSL while already tallying 242 shots (4.2 per match), 104 on target (1.8 per game).
Shaw’s 20.66% shot conversion rate is better than Bethany England (19.79%) and some way clear of Miedema (17.7%), although Chelsea star Sam Kerr (21.48%) boasts a better rate.
She has put away 32 of the 63 big chances that have fallen her way, so her goal tally could arguably have been even more impressive.
Clinching the Golden Boot last season, she scored 21 goals in just 18 WSL appearances. Consequently, the Jamaica international was named PFA Player of the Year and Football Writers' Player of the Year for 2024-25.
But the personal accolades will only mean so much if City cannot deliver that long-awaited league title.
Shaw outperformed her figure of 12.3 xG by 8.7 last season – she had the second-highest xG in the WSL, behind only Alessia Russo (12.4). The City attacker also had the second-most shots (78), again only trailing Russo (79), but she led the league for shots on target (37).
Shaw led the WSL for big chances, with 25, putting away 11, while only Lauren Hemp and Caitlin Foord had more touches in the opposition box (159 and 160 respectively compared to Shaw’s 153).
Most impressively of all, Shaw averaged a goal every 66 minutes in the WSL, and if she can hit it off with Miedema in the coming months, opposing defences will have every reason to fear City.
Simply the best
Miedema endured a season of rehabilitation in 2023-24 after sustaining a serious anterior cruciate ligament injury, which caused her to miss the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
She is one of several huge names in the women's game to be struck by what can only be described as an epidemic of ACL injuries at the top level.
While we do not have many numbers to look at from last year, the figures that Miedema put up en route to becoming the WSL's greatest-ever striker tell their own story.
The Netherlands international has scored 80 goals in 106 games in the competition, massively outperforming her 59.63 xG and scoring every 102 minutes on average.
Since Opta began collecting such data, she has had the most shots on record in the WSL with 452, and 198 of those have hit the target, which is another WSL record.
We know how deadly she can be, and only three players – England, Ellen White and Nikita Parris – have had more big chances fall their way in the WSL than Miedema (80), though only England (48) has converted more than the former Arsenal forward (44).
When breaking down how Miedema reached her record tally, only former Arsenal team-mate Jordan Nobbs (49) has scored more right-footed goals in the WSL than Miedema (48). City's new recruit has scored 25 goals with her left foot, fewer than only Caroline Weir (26) and Lauren Hemp (32). The other seven goals came from Miedema’s head.
Miedema prides herself on her ability to be in the right place at the right time, and she has scored 70 goals from inside the box, a WSL record, three clear of England (67).
Her accuracy in front of goal has been a crucial factor in Arsenal becoming a consistent threat in the WSL, claiming the title with Miedema leading the line in 2018-19. She scored 22 goals in 20 appearances in that year, outperforming her 14.6 xG, while her 20.37% shot conversion rate showcased the ruthless nature of her finishing.
She has only bettered that conversion rate once since then, scoring 16 goals in 2019-20 while registering a 28.57% conversion rate. Miedema was deadly when big chances came her way in 2018-19 and 2019-20, scoring 25 of 36 such opportunities across those two seasons.
Attack, attack, attack
One of the reasons Miedema has been so dangerous is her ability to play in multiple positions across the front four. It is not just goals Miedema brings – she is also a creative force, having laid on 35 assists in the WSL, which ranks behind only Beth Mead (45) and Katie McCabe (36).
City’s attack could not quite get them over the line last season. Winger Chloe Kelly created the second-most chances in the WSL (51), behind only Manchester United’s Katie Zelem (57), providing five assists.
Hemp created 13 big chances last term, a league-high figure, as well as providing a competition-leading eight assists. Hemp was second, behind team-mate Shaw, for overall goal contributions in the competition in 2023-24, with 19 (11 goals, eight assists).
With Khiara Keating starring in goal behind a league-leading defence that conceded just 15 times, it was in attack that City still seemed to lack something last season – scoring 10 goals fewer than Chelsea en route to their painful goal difference title loss.
So what was the missing link for City? Shaw’s injury at the back end of the season saw them lose their most clinical finisher and Chelsea found a way back in.
Addressing City's fans in an introductory press conference, Miedema said: “I have spoken with Gareth over the last couple of months and I got a good feeling from him.
“If you look at my career I actually started as a left winger, then moved to nine and recently played a lot in the 10.
“I am versatile, I like complementing those around me and assisting. It’s not all about scoring goals. I think we need to find the right combination and go from there."
Although a brilliant goalscorer in her own right, Miedema's link-up play could help to push her team-mates onto a new level, perhaps even allowing Shaw to surpass her goalscoring exploits.
Shaw has clearly been the main threat over the last three seasons but Miedema's arrival should take the weight off her shoulders and let her play with even more freedom.
What better way for Miedema and her new side to start their campaign than with a WSL opener away to her former club Arsenal on September 22? That contest will give an early indication of the team most likely to challenge Chelsea for their crown, with debate already swirling over whether Jonas Eidevall may regret letting Miedema go.
What is certain is City have given themselves the best chance of getting the goals they need to challenge for the title. Having Shaw and Miedema link up should excite not only City supporters but all WSL fans, with the duo having the potential to form the league's best partnership yet.
Jonas Eidevall wished former Arsenal forward Vivianne Miedema all the best after her move to Manchester City, as the Gunners prepare for the upcoming Women's Super League season.
Arsenal are set to begin life without the WSL's all-time leading scorer, who left the club after netting 80 times in 106 appearances during her seven-year spell.
Miedema also holds the WSL record for most shots (452), efforts on target (198), touches in the opposition box (816) and goals from inside the area (70).
In WSL history, only Bethany England (48) has converted more big chances than the Netherlands international (44), while Miedema has also provided 35 assists.
Ironically, Miedema's first WSL appearance for her new club will come against Arsenal on September 22, two days after the start of the new campaign on Friday, September 20, for which Eidevall is now focused on getting his current squad ready.
Speaking at the Barclay's WSL's 2024-25 season launch Media Day, he told Stats Perform: "Of course, Vivianne Miedema has had a really good history at Arsenal, some really good contributions to the club.
"Then, you come to a point where you need to say, what does the squad need here now for the next season? We prioritise these players that we now have in the squad.
"[We] wish Viv all the best. I think she's going to have a really good and successful season with Manchester City, but we're really happy and content with the squad that we have."
Arsenal are aiming to improve on last term's third-place finish, and Eidevall wants his players to produce high-quality performances on a more frequent basis.
"We need to keep our highs that we had last season," he added.
"I think we showed - both with performances and results against the teams that were finishing at the top of the league - that we were a really good football team, but we lacked the consistency.
"So, we need to keep our highs, but we need to raise our lows from last season. That's not easy, but if we can do that, then we can be winning."
Manchester City manager Gareth Taylor has urged his side to use last season's disappointment to spur them towards the Women's Super League title.
City finished second in the WSL last campaign with 55 points, the same as champions Chelsea, but missed out due to their inferior goal difference.
The Blues won their fifth consecutive WSL title, with City finishing as runners-up for a sixth time in the competition's history.
Having come so close to claiming their second league title last time around, Taylor is confident his players will be ready for another challenge this season.
Speaking at the Barclay's WSL's 2024-25 season launch Media Day, Taylor told Stats Perform: "Well, you'll be surprised how strong it kind of makes you and how mentally determined you do become.
"Of course, we need to use that frustration, disappointment, whatever term you want to use, to really use it as energy for this season and that's what I've seen in the pre-season. Signs have been good from the players. We feel ready again and re-energized to go and have another crack at the WSL title."
City have already made seven signings this transfer window, with Vivianne Miedema, the WSL's all-time top scorer, the pick of the bunch.
The Dutchwoman has scored 80 goals in 106 games in the competition, outperforming her 59.63 expected goals (xG).
She does not just bring goals though, having registered 35 assists in the WSL, with only Beth Mead (45) and Katie McCabe (36) providing more, and Taylor is hopeful Miedema could be the missing piece of the puzzle.
"If you look at the records she's broken and the records and that she holds, she is really experienced," Taylor said.
"She's still a player who's got her best years, I feel, ahead of her. It's coming now into a new environment, which will take her time to settle in, and we'll give her that time, but, of course, what it brings for us is a sense of confidence.
"I think a lot of the other players will be really confident that when you bring in a player of that ilk, it's a positive for the group. Just excited about the challenge ahead of us and looking forward to working with Viv and the rest of the team."
City's previous WSL triumph came back in 2016 and they have only failed to finish in the top two twice since then.
Following Emma Hayes' departure from Chelsea in May, the title race is expected to be tighter than ever, with Taylor's side among the favourites to clinch the trophy.
"It's an opportunity [without Hayes at Chelsea]," Taylor added.
"What's going to happen? Are they going to be able to maintain and continue in that vein? Who knows? Maybe.
"Does it make a massive difference with the coach leaving? The nucleus of the players is still there? I'm not so sure.
"I think it's, of course, like I say, it may be an opportunity for others to be able to step up. I think we just concentrate on ourselves, who we're battling with, who we're fighting with. I think it's just making sure that we are there first and foremost.
"[The goal is] to win the title."
The new WSL season gets underway on Friday, September 20, while City kick-off their campaign against Arsenal two days later.
Emma Hayes' Chelsea departure could offer a window of opportunity for their Women's Super League rivals in 2024-25, says Manchester United coach Marc Skinner.
Hayes left Chelsea to take up her new role in charge of the United States national team in May, then led them to a record-extending fifth Olympic gold medal at Paris 2024.
Chelsea won seven WSL titles, five FA Cups and two League Cups in 12 years under Hayes, also winning the most games (145), scoring the most goals (525) and earning the most points (462) in the WSL throughout her reign.
Sonia Bompastor, who led Lyon to the Champions League crown in 2021-22 after twice winning the competition as a player, has taken the reins ahead of the 2024-25 campaign, which begins on Friday, September 20, with the Blues taking on Aston Villa.
Despite her impressive CV, many believe Chelsea could endure teething problems and see their five-year stranglehold on the WSL crown threatened this term.
Speaking at the Barclays WSL's 2024-25 season launch media day, United boss Skinner outlined his hope that the Blues could suffer from a drop-off.
"It'll be a welcome change because she seemed to win a lot of games. Chelsea will be different, but they've also got a proven winner in Sonia," Skinner said.
"So it'll be a tough one, but the reality is as a coach, you only play them twice a season, so you've got to prepare for those games differently.
"Emma's gone on to already achieve good things with the American team in the Olympics, and we know she's left her mark on this league. But now it's time for other teams to do the same, so hopefully we can be that team."
Skinner's United side will have a new face between the sticks next season after England stalwart Mary Earps left to join Paris Saint-Germain, following a long-running contract dispute with the Red Devils.
American Phallon Tullis-Joyce is expected to step up after serving as Earps' deputy last season, and Skinner believes she could even have a higher ceiling than her predecessor.
"I'll stress that Mary is a fantastic goalkeeper and a really big character. The reality was when we signed Phallon, we knew that Fallon could be Manchester United's number one," he said.
"Not only does she possess the skillset to be that player, but she hasn't even reached her full potential yet.
"So as much as we'll miss Mary, we wish her all the very best, but we move forward. Football moves too quickly.
"And for us, I have absolute confidence that you will see a fantastic goalkeeper in Phallon, who has all the potential to be a top, top goalkeeper, hopefully at the same level as Mary and beyond because she has an incredible skillset."
Chelsea forward Sam Kerr is being cautious with her comeback from a major knee injury, as she set her sights on winning the Women's Champions League.
Kerr, who is Australia's all-time leading goalscorer, has been out since January after she suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in training.
She missed the back half of Chelsea's Women's Super League and Champions League campaigns, while she was also absent from Australia's Olympics squad.
But despite being eager to return to action under new Chelsea coach Sonia Bompastor, Kerr is not going to rush her comeback.
"I'm not putting a date on my return, just making sure I get it right and making sure I feel good before I get back on the pitch," Kerr told Optus Sport.
"I mean, it's my second ACL, so I know you need to take the time, you need to make sure it's right and I'm doing everything I can.
"But definitely no rush for me, I want to make sure I can play for many more years to come."
Bompastor replaced Emma Hayes after the latter ended her 12-year tenure at the end of last season.
And though Chelsea enjoyed unprecedented domestic dominance under Hayes, the Blues are yet to get over the line in the Champions League.
Bompastor, however, won that trophy with Lyon, and Kerr believes Chelsea now have an edge that was previously missing.
She said: "We would love to win the Champions League, that's the one we want, that's what we shoot for.
"We've fallen short a few years in a row, and hopefully Sonia brings that to this club."
"We want to win as many trophies as we can – we want to retain the league, get the [domestic] cups back, but the Champions League is the one we're going for this year."
Before her injury last season, Kerr was averaging 0.61 goals per 90 minutes, from 3.66 shots per 90, with a 16.67% conversion rate.
But Kerr's goals per 90 was actually at its lowest since the 2019-20 season, while her xG per 90 (0.46) was at its lowest during her time at Chelsea.
Kerr, who turns 31 on September 10, penned a new deal at the club earlier this year.
Asked if she had thought about her next move, Kerr replied: "This feels like home now. I love it here, I love where I live, I love the girls. We win a lot, so it's nice.
"I want to end my career, whenever that is, with as many trophies as I can, and I think we can do that [here]."
Chelsea start their WSL season against Aston Villa on September 20.
Sonia Bompastor has promised there is more hard work to come for her Chelsea players after they readied themselves for the Women's Super League season with a 9-0 hammering of Feyenoord.
Bompastor marked her first match at Kingsmeadow in fantastic fashion on Saturday, with the WSL champions proving far too good for their Dutch opponents.
Sandy Baltimore and Mayra Ramirez struck inside the opening 10 minutes, with Feyenoord's Celainy Obispo subsequently seeing red.
Chelsea were 4-0 up by the break thanks to finishes from Sjoeke Nusken and Wieke Kaptein, with Millie Bright heading home a fifth after the restart.
Substitute Aggie Beever-Jones netted a second-half hat-trick, with Maika Hamano also getting in on the act in a resounding victory.
Chelsea face Aston Villa in their WSL opener on September 20, and former Lyon coach Bompastor says the task is now to be fully prepared for that fixture.
"I can't wait to get to that moment, only two weeks now," she said.
"We are really excited to get to that moment, but we still have two weeks to work and we’ll make sure we work really hard to be ready for that first game.
"We had two main goals – the first one was defensively, we wanted to have high pressure, and be strong in transition. With the ball, I wanted them to play in a nice way, in an attacking style, so with nine goals, it was definitely good and it’s what we had been working on in training.
"I really liked the stadium, the atmosphere. It’s really cool, especially when you win and score a lot of goals. I hope all the games this season, they’ll have the same fun. We’ll keep working really hard to make sure they come and enjoy our games."
Lucy Bronze is targetting Champions League success in her first season at Chelsea.
The Blues are entering a new era under new manager Sonia Bompastor, who led Lyon to the Champions League final last season.
Bronze, though, helped Barca beat Bompastor's team in that clash in Bilbao, claiming the trophy for the fifth time in her career.
The full-back won the Champions League three times with Lyon and twice with Barca, and now wants to make it a sixth with the Blues, who fell short of European glory under Emma Hayes.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Bronze said: "Bringing the Champions League back to this country would be a huge success and would make women's football even better."
And with the standards set by Bompastor, who has won the Champions League three times (twice as a player and once as a manager), and her assistant Camille Abily, Bronze sees no reason why Chelsea cannot get over the line.
"The team's good enough and adding Sonia and Cammy's experience as both coaches and players that have won it is a huge thing," Bronze added.
"They aren't afraid to talk about it and make the demands it takes to get to a final so hopefully this is the year we break that brick wall down.
"She [Bompastor] has very high standards, she's very demanding. I'm laughing but my Lyon team-mates used to play with her and nothing was ever good enough.
"Everything needed to be better, which is why she was one of the best players to ever play for France.
"She's still got a little something now, but it's her standards that will hopefully get this team to the highest level."
The 2024-25 Women's Super League will have fans excited at the prospect of new managers right across the league.
Four of the 12 clubs involved will have new bosses in the dugout when the campaign begins in mid-September.
The most hotly anticipated of those newcomers is Sonia Bompastor, who will be following on from the Emma Hayes dynasty and trying to create her own era of success at Chelsea.
In the last decade, Chelsea found the winning formula that brought silverware galore. Hayes won 15 trophies during her 12 years as manager, cementing the club’s complete dominance of the domestic competitions in England.
That haul included a last-gasp push for the WSL title last season, as the Blues pipped Manchester City to the post.
Opta's supercomputer is backing Chelsea for the title, but Bompastor certainly has big shoes to fill.
The recipe to success
The success that Bompastor must try and replicate will be no mean feat for the new Blues boss. However, she has won one trophy as a player and a manager that Chelsea were never able to under Hayes: the Champions League.
The former France international is also no stranger to pressure and expectations having played in and managed arguably the most successful women's team of all time in the Champions League.
She captained Lyon to victory in 2011 and 2012 and went one better in 2016 to become the first person to win the famous competition as both a player and a manager.
Bompastor's list of honours is significant as a player. She won eight Division 1 Feminine league titles, six with Lyon and two with Montpellier, she won the Coupe de France four times, and the Champions League twice.
As a manager, she won three league titles and one French Cup in her time as coach of Lyon. She has the mindset of a serial winner and, after Hayes, Chelsea could hope for nothing less in a new boss.
Bompastor won exactly 100 of her 118 games in charge of Lyon, registering an 84.75% win percentage and losing only eight times.
Her Lyon team scored 381 goals, an average of 3.81 per match, while conceding only 71 in return (0.71 per game). Bompastor's numbers truly speak for themselves and are the reason Chelsea made her the number one candidate to replace Hayes and lead what they hope will be a new era of success.
A new champion?
The WSL is notoriously a difficult hunting ground for new managers. No manager in the competition's history has ever won the WSL in their first season in charge. There have also only ever been five winners of the competition.
Bompastor's predecessor Hayes won seven, Laura Harvey and Matt Beard have two titles each, while Nick Cushing and Joe Montemurro lifted the trophy once apiece.
It means we have an interesting quirk in the new season, with Liverpool boss Beard being the only active manager to have won the WSL title among all the current bosses.
But Bompastor will still face stiff competition, as her main rivals in Jonas Eidevall, Marc Skinner and Gareth Taylor have all taken Hayes to the wire in recent seasons as the league continues its explosion of expansion, growth and increased competitiveness.
Bompastor came so close to securing a second Champions League medal last time out with her Lyon side ultimately falling just short when they faced a formidable Barcelona team who made their own piece of history by securing a quadruple, becoming the first team to do this since Arsenal in 2007.
Her ability to navigate and win at all costs could bring a new chapter of success for Chelsea.
Bompastor's Blues...champions breed champions
The new Chelsea boss has been left with solid foundations as she aims to win the WSL at the first time of asking. Bompastor is taking over a team that scored 71 goals in the WSL last term, 10 more than any other team, while only Man City (15) conceded fewer goals than the Blues (18).
Chelsea accumulated 59.87 xG, the most in the league, over four more than next-best Arsenal (55.48).
In fact, Chelsea had the best shot-conversion rate in the WSL last season, despite losing leading scorer and 2023 player of the year Sam Kerr to an ACL injury at their winter training camp in January.
Before her injury last season, Kerr was averaging 0.61 goals per 90 minutes, from 3.66 shots per 90, with a 16.67% conversion rate.
But Kerr's goals per 90 was actually at its lowest since the 2019-20 season, while her xG per 90 (0.46) was at its lowest during her time at Chelsea altogether.
Getting Kerr fit and firing will be Bombastor's task – the Australian is still a world-class operator on her day, as she showed by hitting double figures in each of the three seasons prior to last season. Kerr has committed her future to the club, signing a new contract till 2026.
Chelsea had 429 shots in the WSL, the second-highest total after Arsenal (436). They averaged 0.13 xG per shot, a higher total than any team in the division. Lauren James was the joint second-highest scorer in the WSL last season, with 13 goals. The England international greatly outperformed her 6.1 xG, showing high-level finishing and demonstrating clear improvement in that area of her game.
Mayra Ramirez had a fine Olympics with Colombia, and starred in Chelsea's huge win over Manchester United on the final day of last season. She scored three goals in seven WSL games last term following her record-breaking switch from Spain.
The impact Ramirez could be huge in her first full season with the club. Her speed, strength and deadly finishing could prove too much for defences across the WSL.
Bompastor has also added more quality to the attack by bringing in Sandy Baltimore on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain. The France international is another proven winner, is a creative force and loves to drive at defences. She made 21 successful dribbles and had 24 touches in the opposition box in the Champions League last season.
Defensively, the Blues were solid last term, with their 18 goals conceded coming from an expected goal against of 20.36, though they faced more shots than both Man City (184) and Arsenal (176). Millie Bright was missing for most of the season, however, and she really could be like a new signing this term.
Bompastor has looked to the market to help Chelsea reach that next level. Lucy Bronze, who has won every domestic trophy there is to win in France, Spain and in England, has joined after leaving Barcelona. Bronze has won the Champions League five times, lifting the trophy in spells with both Lyon and Barca.
Bronze created 28 chances for Barcelona last season from full-back – the second-most of any defender for the European champions, after Ona Batlle. Bronze supplied four assists and her experience in both attack and defence could be one of the missing links for European success.
The best of the rest
But what constitutes success for the new manager? And how big is the expectation from the club and fans alike to see their recent glory days replicated? With Man City and Arsenal both adding significant summer signings to their squads, this may be the hardest and fiercest title race we have ever seen in the WSL.
City ran the Blues so close, with Hayes' team winning it on goal difference on the final day. Taylor has not left anything to chance, with City signing the all-time leading goalscorer in the WSL Vivianne Miedema, who left Arsenal in the summer.
It is not just goals Miedema brings - she is also a creative force, having laid on 35 assists in the WSL, which ranks behind only Beth Mead (45) and Katie McCabe (36).
With Golden Boot winner Khadija Shaw, as well as Lauren Hemp, Chloe Kelly and Mary Fowler in their ranks, there seems to be little danger of City losing a title on goal difference again with such a stacked attacking line.
Arsenal stayed in the race for as long as they could but their attack ultimately let them down. While they have let arguably one of the best players of all time leave their ranks, they have brought in some big names themselves in the hope they can challenge their London rivals once more.
Quality signings have come in at both ends of the pitch. Mariona Caldentey (signed from Barcelona), Daphne van Domselaar (signed from Aston Villa) and Rosa Kafaji (signed from BK Hacken), who is a youngster regularly tipped as the next big superstar of the women's game, have all arrived.
But only time will tell if one of these sides can beat Bompastor's side to glory and success.
We could be about to witness the new era of a new champion, especially if she can clinch that elusive Champions League title that Chelsea have so longed for.
Sonia Bompastor hailed her Chelsea players for taking her ideas on board quickly following Sunday's 1-0 friendly victory over Arsenal.
New arrival Sandy Baltimore scored the only goal of the game as Chelsea overcame their London rivals at Audi Field in Chicago.
Chelsea begin their quest for a sixth straight Women's Super League crown against Aston Villa on September 20, following a period of upheaval at Stamford Bridge.
Former Lyon boss Bompastor took the reins after Emma Hayes left to take the United States job and has overseen two pre-season victories, with the Blues also beating Gotham FC 3-1 on Monday.
Though she acknowledges there is more work to do ahead of their WSL opener, Bompastor believes her new players have already made plenty of progress.
"What I take from the game is that we worked really hard as a team and even if we had difficult moments, we were able to manage them," Bompastor said.
"This is a good team spirit and I like that. Of course, the result was good even if we know we still need to work. These have been two good games for us to build on and to progress.
"We are in the beginning. It's not even been one month working with the team and it takes time to make sure all the girls understand our game model and the expectations I have of them on the field.
"I'm really happy. I think what we have wanted to work on since the beginning has been about the team spirit and from the two games we've played you can see we are playing like a team together, even when we have hard moments in games.
"From these two games, we will be working, progressing and reinforcing the messages on the game model.
"I'm already happy with the girls, their performance and what they're achieving on the field."
Reggae Girlz forward and captain Khadija "Bunny" Shaw continues to make history, adding the prestigious Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) Women's Player of the Year award to her growing list of accolades. Shaw’s remarkable season with Manchester City Women saw her leading her team to a second-place finish in the Women's Super League, narrowly missing out on the title to Chelsea on goal difference.
Shaw’s performance throughout the season was nothing short of spectacular. She ended the campaign as the league's top scorer, netting 21 goals, including three hat-tricks, and providing three assists. This impressive tally not only made her the leading scorer but also marked a personal best, surpassing her total from the previous season by one goal.
After receiving the award, Shaw reflected on her journey and the significance of the honor. "I am both happy and proud to have received this award — to be recognized in such a way by my peers is a very special honour," Shaw said. "I also want to thank my teammates and the entire coaching staff because without them this would not be possible. I’d also like to congratulate all my fellow nominees who are such amazing players. To have been voted the player of the year means a lot."
The 27-year-old Shaw's journey to the top has been a testament to her hard work, determination, and unyielding belief in her dreams. Speaking with the BBC, she shared, "For me, it's been quite an interesting journey to where I am now, but from a young girl growing up, I always had a dream, and that dream was to be the best that I could be. Every day I try to do that not just on the field but off the field and to see if I can inspire young girls, not just in Jamaica but the Caribbean, to show that 'okay, if I can do it, it's definitely possible for you. You just have to believe in your dream.'"
Despite her success, Shaw is not content to rest on her laurels. She is already looking ahead to next season, determined to push her game to even greater heights. "I think for me, it's about keep having fun, embracing my journey, and pushing my levels even higher because when I look back at this season, there are a lot of goals I should have scored," she said. "But for me, it's just embracing the journey and keep working hard for the team, keep pushing my levels, and you never know where I will end at the end of the season."
Shaw’s impact goes beyond her on-field achievements. As the first Jamaican woman to win the PFA Women’s Player of the Year award, she continues to be a beacon of inspiration for young athletes, particularly in the Caribbean.
In addition to the PFA award on Tuesday, Shaw had previously been named the Women’s Super League Player of the Year for the 2023-24 season and Player of the Year at the Women’s Football Awards, further cementing her status as one of the top players in the world.
Sonia Bompastor says she "likes the pressure" that comes from succeeding Emma Hayes at Chelsea.
Hayes, who won Olympic gold earlier this month with the United States, left the Blues at the end of last season after a glittering 12-year spell in charge that saw her win seven Women's Super League titles, including each of the last five in a row.
She also led them to five Women's FA Cups and two Women's League Cups to bring her tally to 14 major trophies.
Bompastor, who spent three years in charge of Lyon, winning three consecutive league titles and a Champions League, is now hoping to build on Hayes' success.
"I just feel a lucky manager to have this opportunity to build from Emma and have this opportunity to show who I am as a manager but also as a person," Bompastor said in her first Chelsea press conference.
"I already told everyone that we are here to win every single title, every single game, so this is why I came. I like the pressure.
"When I had the meeting with the sporting directors, I said this is something really special to win the Champions League.
"I think we have all the quality at this club to have this trophy at home."
Hayes came close to winning the Champions League with Chelsea, but fell short in 2020-21, losing to Barcelona.
With one eye on achieving European success this season, the Blues have already brought in Lucy Bronze and Sandy Baltimore, but Bompastor is keen to get some more additions through the door to ensure they can make a strong challenge.
"You know how competitive the league is here, maybe one of the most competitive in the world, so it's so difficult for an English team to perform in every game," she added.
"I'll make sure we have the good numbers and the quality to perform in every game."
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