The Blues sealed an unbeaten domestic season with victory over the Red Devils on Sunday – and perhaps found something that could be key in Europe
It's hard to emphasise enough just how impressive Chelsea's first season under Sonia Bompastor has been. When Emma Hayes left the club last summer, some predicted that the Blues would endure something of a transition season. Perhaps their Women's Super League title would be up for grabs, that the one trophy they came into this campaign holding. If not, surely they wouldn't get stronger so quickly, so the League Cup and FA Cup were still opportunities for others. And yet, by guiding Chelsea to a 3-0 win over Manchester United at Wembley on Sunday, Bompastor completed a domestic treble without overseeing a single defeat across all three competitions.
A quick glance at that scoreline and one might assume it was a relatively straightforward outing for the Blues. But, just as the players and their manager have been stressing all season long, none of this is easy – even if they continue to come out with results that suggest otherwise. Sunday went into that category; while the scoreline was convincing, it wasn't until the 84th minute that Catarina Macario doubled their lead, with the scorer of that opener, Sandy Baltimore, putting some gloss on things in stoppage time.
It was no surprise that, when asked about Chelsea's dominance after the game, United head coach Marc Skinner said: "I think Chelsea, in games this year, you could've got them. I don't think most teams in the league have maximised that." After all, he had just watched his team in that exact situation, unable to put away a couple of big chances before succumbing to a disappointing defeat.
Skinner isn't the only one to have been in that position through a 2024-25 campaign in which Bompastor has wanted several performances from the Blues to be better, always pushing that higher standard regardless of the result. But, at the end of the day, the wins still came. Chelsea are almost always able to get over the line, able to find a way to win and craft opportunities out of somewhere.
That, though, is to undersell how Bompastor's side played at Wembley. Bar a good start from United, and a few minutes after half-time, Chelsea controlled this final and deserved to win. They deserved to go ahead when Erin Cuthbert won a penalty just before the interval, and while 3-0 might not represent how close the game was, it was well-earned by a team that pushed until the very end – the very end of the 90 minutes and the very end of this season, to sign off with a third trophy from four available and further cement themselves as the dominant force in English women's football.
The next step is Europe. The only blot on Bompastor's copybook this term is the 8-2 aggregate defeat to Barcelona in the semi-finals of the Champions League, that the one trophy that has evaded this team despite its domestic success and, as such, that the one trophy these players, this staff and this club crave so much. It might be a few months until the Blues kick a ball in that competition now, as the summer approaches, but there was still something in this final game of the 2024-25 season that could bode well for their chances of triumphing on the continent in 2025-26.
GOAL breaks down the winners & losers from Wembley Stadium…
Getty ImagesWINNER: Sandy Baltimore
What a fantastic first season at Chelsea it has been for Sandy Baltimore. After arriving from Paris Saint-Germain last summer, the France international has had to adapt to a first move abroad – which includes a different style of play, a different culture and a different language – as well as to a slight positional change. Having largely excelled as a winger at home, Bompastor has regularly asked Baltimore to play at left-back in England, something that she has steadily grown impressive accustomed to.
In recent weeks, though, Baltimore has been given more freedom in attack, as was the case at Wembley. Starting on the left of a front three, and in a 3-4-3 shape that meant there was less emphasis on her defensive duties, the 25-year-old picked up pockets of space all over the park and was a devastating match-winner in a tight contest, scoring two and assisting the other of Chelsea's three goals.
What's exciting for the Blues is that Baltimore should only get better. She's spent this season doing all that adapting, she had a spell out injured and she's still so young. She could be a huge figure in this team's quest for European glory in the coming seasons.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesLOSER: Ella Toone
Ella Toone has some incredible memories at Wembley. It was here that she broke the deadlock in the final of the 2022 European Championship, helping England's Lionesses to secure a first major tournament triumph, and it wasn't long after that moment that she made her mark in the Women's Finalissima at the same venue, also scoring in that success for her country. Indeed, just 12 months ago, she was a stand-out performer when United won a first major trophy on the women's side in a 4-0 FA Cup final win over Tottenham.
On Sunday, though, she wasn't called upon from the start by Skinner as the Red Devils came out to defend that title against Chelsea. The United boss explained that he was trying to find a "balance" whereby his side could match the Blues "physically" in midfield, but he would also have "the opportunity to change the game" by bringing on a player like Toone later.
It will have been disappointing for the England international, though, who has a fantastic record at this ground with four goals scored and three trophies lifted. That she was unable to impact the game when brought on at half-time, to prevent United from succumbing to defeat, will only add to that feeling.
Getty ImagesWINNER: Aggie Beever-Jones
Last season was Aggie Beever-Jones' breakout year, when she firmly asserted herself on the Chelsea first team after coming through the academy and developing through a couple of loan spells. This season, she has consolidated that, transforming into an even more important player for the Blues, to the degree that she was a starter in a major cup final for the first time on Sunday.
It was Beever-Jones' first appearance at Wembley, in fact, but she hardly looked daunted by the occasion. Throughout the first half, the England international was Chelsea's liveliest player, consistently proving to be the most dangerous outlet in attack with her smart footwork, anticipation of play and direct approach.
Sadly, none of that ended in a goal for her here, but her performance was a reminder of the progress she has made this season alone. That is exciting for the Blues next season, but also for England, for whom she could be a game-changer at this summer's Euros. She is certainly set to go into that tournament with real momentum.
Getty ImagesLOSER: Maya Le Tissier
This game felt like an opportunity for Maya Le Tissier. In her final game of her first season as United's captain, aged 23, the stage was set for her to make a serious impression at Wembley, to continue the remarkable form she has shown all season-long, and with England manager Sarina Wiegman watching. Despite Le Tissier's excellence at club level, she's not been afforded many opportunities with the Lionesses – at least not at centre-back. Lift the FA Cup as United's captain, and surely she couldn't be ignored.
Sadly, it didn't go that way for her. After struggling when these two sides met in the 2023 final, Le Tissier had some iffy moments against Mayra Ramirez's physicality and directness, and then she was beaten to the ball by Catarina Macario for Chelsea's second, killer goal. She's still had a fantastic season, but this was a reminder that there is room for growth before that translates to England level.
