Hamano strikes as Chelsea open WSL season with win over Manchester City

A new season, a new opposing manager, new signings, but the same old story: a Chelsea win. Only just, but a win is a win, especially in a tricky opening-night fixture, as Sonia Bompastor’s side embark on a quest for the club’s seventh consecutive Women’s Super League title.

It saw Andrée Jeglertz lose his first game in charge of Manchester City ; Bompastor, by contrast, is still yet to lose a league fixture in English football and Chelsea remain unbeaten in the WSL since May 2024, a run of 26 league games.

On Friday night they displayed many of the characteristics that have helped them dominate the division in modern times, particularly their ruthlessness in the final third by comparison to their rivals.

Khadija Shaw lashed a rising drive narrowly over the crossbar with 11 minutes to go, but that was as close as it got to an equaliser for the team who finished fourth in the division last term. They had more bad news when Alex Greenwood and Lily Murphy sustained injuries in stoppage time.

There were some positives for Manchester City , not least an encouraging debut from Sydney Lohmann in midfield following her switch from Bayern Munich. Iman Beney, one of the stars of Switzerland’s run to the Euro 2025 quarter-finals, also made her debut late on, although their deadline-day acquisition, Grace Clinton, missed out with a slight knock.

Chelsea, meanwhile, had hoped to welcome back striker Sam Kerr to competitive action for the first time in 20 months but, while she made the substitutes’ bench, she was not brought on.

Just under six weeks since the Euro 2025 final in Basel concluded a tournament which delivered packed stadiums and raucous crowds, it might have been a bit of a comedown for the players to walk out at Stamford Bridge and see the top tier of the stands essentially empty. Nonetheless, the Chelsea fans who did show up were enjoying what they saw, especially from one of their most important summer signings, the Australia right-back Ellie Carpenter. Her pacy bursts up the wing caused problems for Manchester City and she created the opening goal with an inch-perfect, low cross into the path of Aggie Beever-Jones.

Another of the hosts’ new transfers, Alyssa Thompson, was introduced to the home fans on the pitch before kick-off to add to the mood of anticipation. This fixture came too soon for her debut after her deadline-day move from Angel City for a club record £1.1m but Chelsea hope her arrival can help them in their quest to achieve the aim clearly specified in Bompastor’s matchday programme notes: to win all four major trophies this term and go one better that last term’s domestic treble. As for City , just one piece of silverware would be an uplift on their past three trophyless campaigns.

The away side had been fortunate not to concede an early penalty when the ball struck Gracie Prior’s arm inside the box and was diverted goalwards – the City goalkeeper Ayaka Yamashita showed great reactions to stop the deflected effort from Sandy Baltimore.

During the first half Hannah Hampton picked up straight where she left off after her heroic performances for her country this summer, producing two high-calibre saves to deny Shaw. The first was a dive to her left to keep out a fierce strike in the game’s first attack, and the second – when Chelsea were already 1-0 up – was a strong low save from close range.

The visitors, who deployed Lauren Hemp on the right wing instead of the left and enjoyed success when she cut inside on to her stronger left foot, were creating opportunities and went close again when Greenwood’s curling free-kick rattled the crossbar with 10 minutes remaining of the first half. Vivianne Miedema also went close with a driving strike from outside the box in first-half stoppage time. Jeglertz’s first half-time team talk in charge of Manchester City seemed to inspire them as they began the second half dominating the territory and preventing Chelsea from holding on to the ball, but Yui Hasegawa flicked a great chance narrowly wide from a Hemp cross.

They would be made to pay for failing to capitalise on their spell of pressure, because Chelsea’s Maika Hamano was afforded the freedom of the penalty area at the other end to double the defending champions’ lead. It was all too simple. Wieke Kaptein had time to pick out her pass to Hamano, as the Manchester City defending left much to be desired. They will not win the league if teams can score against them so easily.

City fans could be forgiven for fearing their team were set to limp to a disappointing toothless away defeat in a key game. Niamh Charles’s own goal – a header into her own net from a whipped Greenwood free-kick – gave them hope, but they could not find an equaliser.

Header image: [Photograph: Crystal Pix/MB Media/Getty Images]