Katie Stengel scored a brace from the penalty spot to help Liverpool Women produce one of the shock football results of the weekend in the Women’s Super League. Fran Kirby put the visitors in the front from the penalty spot in the third minute before Stengel equalized from the penalty spot in the 67th minute. A frustrating evening got even more frustrating for the defending champions when Stengel converted her second penalty kick to score the match-winner. Sam Kerr cut a frustrated figure up front as she was deprived of service throughout the night.
Managers Reaction
Chelsea manager Emma Hayes: “You must be patient to break them down because they play a 4-5-1 formation and don’t come out. They scored twice—once on a throw-in that was a penalty and again during a transition. They simply made the most of the opportunities; they didn’t have many shots in open play. I didn’t believe we would be able to open a barn door today for us. We simply played terribly in the first half, in my opinion. Sometimes, I believe, it’s better to just follow the rules and keep passing the ball than to try to win by larger margins.”
Liverpool manager Matt Beard: “It’s only the opening match. I believed that after the entire game, we earned it. We’ve gotten off to a good start at home with three points, especially with the tactical adjustments we made at halftime. Last season, this was our stronghold, and today, we’ve made it uncomfortable and challenging for Chelsea. We tested ourselves during the preseason against strong WSL opponents; nonetheless, we started cautiously in terms of not stepping out when we can and putting them under pressure, and it just needed some time. When you looked at the players who came on, we were physically a lot bigger.”
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