Chelsea celebrated a 3-2 victory over Real Madrid in their opening fixture of the 2024/25 UEFA Women’s Champions League.

The Blues may have clinched a win, but they looked shaky in their first group stage fixture under the lights.

Despite the pouring rain making for difficult playing conditions, Sonia Bompastor’s side managed to get the job done, with goals from Sjoeke Nusken, Guro Reiten and Mayra Ramirez.

They will now be looking ahead to their next game in the Netherlands against FC Twente later this month.

How the game unfolded

Chelsea took the lead almost immediately after a cross from Johanna Rytting Kaneryd was sent into the back of the net by Sjoeke Nusken, in what looked like a potential deflection from Real Madrid’s Sheila Garcia.

Despite a goal, the first half failed to pick up momentum. Rytting Kaneryd and Sandy Baltimore showed the most promise, working well in tandem with Ramirez. Although the Blues remained in possession, their performance lacked excitement which may well have been first game nerves.

However, the Blues were gifted a penalty towards the end of the first half, in a decision aggressively contested by Real Madrid. Reiten comfortably slotted the ball into the left-hand corner, taking Chelsea’s lead to 2-0.

But it wasn’t long until Real Madrid took advantage of some sloppy defending by Chelsea, which saw Alba Redondo send the ball through the legs of Zecira Musovic, putting Real Madrid on the scoresheet for the first time.

The Blues were given some much needed breathing room just eight minutes into the second half after Ramirez sent the ball into the top-right corner with a header, giving Chelsea back control at 3-1.

But that didn’t last long. With less than ten minutes to go, things got tense when Real Madrid substitute Linda Caciedo knocked the ball past Musovic, seeing the Spanish side attempt a last-minute clawback at 3-2.

Real Madrid dominated the rest of the 90 minutes, exposing the gaps in Chelsea’s performance. Despite a lot of goals, Bompator is likely to come away from the game with areas of improvement for her side which may well be down to pre-match nerves.

GK: Zecira Musovic – 6/10 – Didn’t have a huge amount to do, but ended up with the ball going through her legs when Real Madrid conceded.

RB: Lucy Bronze – 8/10 – Again, didn’t have a lot to do but stayed calm and collected when required.

CB: Nathalie Bjorn – 7/10 – Succesfully held the backline.

CB: Millie Bright – 7/10 – Played some lovely passes down the middle helping to create space, but lacked dominance at times.

LB: Sandy Baltimore – 8/10 – A brave approach not in her usual position, making some great attacking runs and effectively defending.

CM: Lauren James – 7/10 – Struggled to maintain possession, but looked threatening when on the ball.

CM: Sjoeke Nusken – 7/10 – Did a reliable job of holding the midfield together while scoring a goal.

CM: Wieke Kaptein – 8/10 – Put in a good shift, effectively partnering up with Ramirez and Rytting Kaneryd.

RW: Johanna Rytting Kaneryd – 9/10 – An exceptional performance, not only getting on the scoresheet but also working the entire length of the pitch.

ST: Mayra Ramirez – 8/10 – A stellar return from the striker, who proved why she should be in the starting XI.

LW: Guro Reiten – 7/10 – Worked well alongside Sandy Baltimore when she moved up the left-hand side.

Substitutes

SUB: Ashley Lawrence (67′ for Baltimore) – 7/10

SUB: Aggie Beever-Jones (67′ for Ramirez) – 8/10

SUB: Maika Hamano (67′ for Kaptein) -7/10

SUB: Oriana Jean-Francois (75′ for Rytting Kaneryd) -7/10

SUB: Maelys Mpome (88′ for Lauren James) -N/A

Subs not used: Eve Perisset, Julia Bartel.

Manager

Sonia Bompastor- 7/10 – Chelsea might have got the job done, but they looked shaky and uncomfortable at points.

Player of the match – Johanna Rytting Kaneryd

READ THE LATEST WOMEN’S FOOTBALL NEWS, FEATURES & ANALYSIS