After scoring our only goal in a 1-1 draw with Barcelona in the Women’s Champions League on Thursday night, Ellie Carpenter explained why Chelsea’s performance proved that we can challenge the best sides for the trophy.
The Blues have a match against Roma at Stamford Bridge and then an away fixture at Wolfsburg still to play, but Carpenter – who has already won the Women’s Champions League twice with Lyon – has ambitions that go way beyond the initial phase.
‘At this club, with this team, we have big goals and big aspirations, and the depth and the quality of play that we have in this team is unbelievable,’ said Carpenter.
‘We hold ourselves to high standards, and I think we really put on a performance and showed we can match up with the best and compete for that Champions League trophy.
‘We have two games left in our league phase campaign, and they’re very important. Qualifying for the quarter-finals is on my mind, and I think this game really helped towards that.’
The Australian opened the scoring with an outstanding strike after 16 minutes, before Ewa Pajor levelled the scoring in the first half.
After a below-par performance against Liverpool at the weekend, Carpenter felt like the display against Pere Romeu’s side served as a big boost to the team’s confidence heading into the international break – even if she was disappointed not to take the victory in the end.
‘Barca are a quality team,’ she continued. ‘We know they love to have the ball. I think how we set up our tactics was really smart against them, and we executed it very well. That was our job tonight.
‘It was a massive thing for us, and we had some really good chances. It’s a huge confidence boost for us at the moment, and we still have two remaining games to play.
‘The result brought mixed emotions. We’re a bit disappointed that we didn’t come away with the three points because we had some chances at the end, but I am proud that we got the point. It shows how good this team is when we stick to our roles and execute the game plan.’
There seemed to be a gasp of surprise among the Stamford Bridge crowd when Carpenter blasted a shot from the edge of the penalty area into the back of the net.
While the supporters may not have expected the right-wing back to go for goal in that scenario, the 25-year-old had confidence in her ability and knew she could convert from that range.
‘Yeah, it’s in my locker,’ she smiled. ‘Aggie put a great through-ball in for me, and I had a lot of space. Everyone’s been telling me to shoot more in training and during the game, so I thought, ‘Why not?!’
‘I’m just really proud I got to contribute to the team. That was a real momentum boost for us early in the game because it’s so important to score early.’
