Eriksson’s piece of Rooney magic lifts misfiring Chelsea
It would have been inconceivable to think, watching Chelsea canter to a league and cup Double last season, that Emma Hayes’s side would have to wait until the seventh game of this campaign to muster their second league win.
But so entrenched have their goalscoring shortcomings proved that, even on a day when they managed 18 shots against Liverpool, there were times when those watching found themselves wondering what the Blues would have to do to send the net bulging.
Something pretty spectacular, it turns out. Just shy of the half-hour, Erin Cuthbert’s corner found the head of the rising Drew Spence, and the flick-on looped into Magdalena Eriksson’s vicinity. With a touch to steady herself, the Swede’s legs unfurled and her crisp bicycle kick sailed beyond Fran Kitching.
“I think I blacked out – I don’t really know what happened,” Eriksson said. “I just tried to get it on goal and it felt like it took ages to go in.
“We were desperate to get three points and we need to build on this now. We should have scored even more but we played together and everyone fought right until the end of the game.”
Either side of Eriksson’s Rooneyesque moment, Chelsea peppered the Liverpool goal.
Beth England was inches away from sliding the ball home and Sophie Ingle, Ji So-yun and Hannah Blundell all came close.
Liverpool, under new manager Vicky Jepson, had previously won three from four in the league following the abrupt resignation of manager Neil Redfearn after one game. The departure of 10 firstteam players and coaches over the summer resulted in a composite side, yet they were two points ahead of Chelsea before this game.
The Reds were stubborn and defended stoically but their best chance – Kirsty Linett’s dipping long-range shot – never looked like troubling keeper Carly Telford. Chelsea Liverpool Referee