Ajax Vrouwen 0 – 3 Chelsea Ladies

Chelsea continued their quest for a maiden Ladies’s Champions League crown as a 3-0 first-leg victory seized management of their quarter-final towards Ajax.

Lauren James’ fifteenth purpose of the season set Chelsea on their means earlier than a double from Sjoeke Nusken noticed the Blues overpower a youthful Ajax on their first quarter-final look.

Chelsea welcome Ajax to Stamford Bridge on March 27, with Emma Hayes’ aspect in pole place to achieve a fifth European semi-final in six seasons.

Having crushed Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Roma whereas navigating their means via a frightening group section, Ajax’s younger stars set about claiming one other European scalp in entrance a 35,991 crowd – a Dutch report for a girls’s sport.

Romee Leuchter practically gave Ajax a dream begin inside seven minutes, rattling the body of the Chelsea purpose, earlier than Tiny Hoekstra pressured an early save from Chelsea goalkeeper Hannah Hampton.

The early stress kicked Chelsea into gear and the guests quickly took the lead, the prolific James timing her run in behind completely to collect Erin Cuthbert’s via ball after it ricocheted off two Ajax defenders, earlier than coolly rounding the goalkeeper and changing to silence the Amsterdam crowd.

Chelsea seemed to have doubled their lead 5 minutes earlier than the interval, however Guro Reiten’s effort was dominated out after Nusken was adjudged to have interfered in play from an offside place.

However Ajax’s reprieve lasted all of three minutes, Nusken atoning for her position in Chelsea’s disallowed second purpose by changing Reiten’s superb cross on the slide as Chelsea established a two-goal benefit on the stroke of half-time.

Ajax confirmed little signal of with the ability to chip away on the deficit after the break and, as fatigue started to set in, Chelsea all however put the sport out of their attain with a bit assist from the bench.

After James pressured a save from Ajax goalkeeper Regina Van Eijk and Erin Cuthbert blazed an excellent probability over, Chelsea acquired the third their dominance deserved, as substitute Catarina Macario crossed for Nusken to go in her second and underscore a dominant efficiency from the ladies in blue.

Hayes requires big Stamford Bridge turnout

Chelsea Ladies supervisor Emma Hayes: “I believed it was a extremely skilled efficiency from the staff. We defended solidly, as we now have been doing. After which as soon as we began to assault the areas down the edges, we acquired good alternatives: 4 crosses, two targets within the first half.

“Excellent performances from [Kadeisha] Buchanan and Nüsken particularly, however the staff as a complete, you may see they had been assured. As soon as the sport settled down, we managed it.

“I used to be delighted to get the third purpose. but it surely’s nonetheless solely half-time. I would like the group to return out and help us [next week], we now have an incredible staff and I need a greater crowd than we now have had within the Champions League… thus far.”

What’s subsequent for Chelsea?

Sunday twenty fourth March 4:30pm


Kick off 4:30pm

Chelsea journey to West Ham within the Ladies’s Tremendous League on Sunday at 4.30pm – reside on Sky Sports activities – earlier than internet hosting Ajax within the second leg of their Ladies’s Champions League quarter-final on March 27 at 8pm.