The Dutch star came off the bench at half-time to score twice putting Nick Cushing’s side in control of their Champions League quarter-final.
Manchester City might as well be on course for the last four of the Champions League after inflicting Chelsea’s first of the Bompastor era on Wednesday night in a 2-0 win in the quarter-final first-leg courtesy of Vivianne Miedema brace.
City Started off quite brightly early into the game with Mary Fowler at the heart of the game. This was the host’s third of four encounters against Chelsea within a span of 12 days and were all out for revenge after their weekend League Cup defeat to the Blues.
Lily Murphy was also causing Chelsea a few problems down the left flank as City dominated the first half but lacked the cutting edge in attack to find the breakthrough. Interim boss Nick Cushing’s half-time substitute, Miedema proved to be the difference maker as the 28-year-old came early into the start of the second-half to break the deadlock.
Fowler’s cross was headed goal ward by Laia Aleixandri but was parried onto the bar by Hampton, only for the ball to fall kindly to an unmarked Miedema at the far post to emphatically knock home via a touch off the crossbar.
Chelsea ramped up the pressure late on, as Mayra Ramirez saw a goal disallowed for offside, but it was the hosts who doubled their lead in the dying minutes. Kerolin hared down the right again before playing the ball in to Miedema to sweep home her second of the night and put City in control of the tie ahead of the return at Stamford Bridge next Thursday.
City’s win not only ended Chelsea’s unbeaten run under head coach, Sonia Bompastor but it also snatched a piece of history. Should Chelsea have avoided defeat against City, the Blues would have set a new record for the longest ever unbeaten streak by a WSL team across all competitions, 31 (W29 and D2) according to OpTa.
After the march, Cushing revealed that Meidema, who now has 31 UCL goals in 35 appearances, was disappointed not to start the clash with the Londoners; he expressed his delight in seeing her stamp her authority on proceedings after her introduction.
“I’m sure you can imagine what she said [after starting among the substitutes],” he declared,“I expected it and for every world class player when they don’t play, but it’s not that bit I think is almost the defining factor between a top player.
“Tonight, we saw the level of Viv, in or out, I said she’d go into the team at half-time, but she went in to be the difference and to do that shows her level.
“I was confident if she got chances, she’d score, we just have to create those moments for her. Tonight, we saw many and she thinks she should’ve had a hat-trick!”
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