Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor has confirmed that Lucy Bronze, Lauren James, and Naomi Girma will all miss Sunday’s WSL showdown against Leicester City.
There is also uncertainty surrounding Niamh Charles after she picked up an ankle knock in the 3-1 win over Aston Villa.
Charles was forced off at half-time after receiving treatment during the first half. While there was initial concern over the injury, Bompastor eased fears with a positive update.
“There was nothing major from the last game,” she said. “We had Niamh, who had something with her ankle, but she’s recovering well. We’ll see if she’s available for Sunday. From what I saw on the pitch, I was worrying, but after the game, she was fine.”
The news means Girma, who has yet to feature this season, will remain sidelined. Meanwhile, Bronze and James continue their recovery following their involvement with England’s European Championship triumph.
Bompastor added: “Lucy, LJ, and Naomi are all progressing well. They won’t be involved in the game this weekend, but probably we’ll see them later or earlier in October. They are all progressing individually in their own way.”
Chelsea fans did, however, get a glimpse of new signing Alyssa Thompson against Villa. The 20-year-old came off the bench and impressed in her debut. Bompastor is delighted with how quickly the American forward has settled into life at the club.
“I had a really good conversation again with Alyssa yesterday,” the manager explained. “She’s settling in really well. She loves being here in London. Coming from LA, that’s a good thing. I think she already feels part of a family, and for me, as a manager, that’s important.”
With a packed schedule ahead, Bompastor emphasized the importance of squad depth and competition for places.
“With the quality of the players we have, we are one of the teams with the best quality upfront, for sure,” she said. “The schedule is intense, and we want to compete in all four competitions. It’s important to have depth in every position, but also to have healthy competition between the players.
“We want to go into every game and be a competitive team. When you look at some of the teams in Europe, they also invested a lot of money in some players, so I would say we are probably one of the best in Europe, but not the only one. We will have some good competition, and it will be nice to see that.”
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