In English men’s football, there’s a sporadic tradition of naming FA Cup Finals after the game’s defining player: Stanley Matthews in 1953 or Steven Gerrard in 2006. I often think women’s football would be better off avoiding copying much of the men’s game, but after Chelsea beat Manchester United to win the Women’s FA Cup, maybe aping this tradition should be an exception, as it was a game that contained the mark of Sandy Baltimore.
Involved in all the goals, and often Chelsea’s biggest attacking threat, it was a fitting capstone to an impressive debut campaign in England for Baltimore. Signed as a winger who suddenly had to play as a left back as Niamh Charles was injured for the initial months of the season, she was so proficient there that Charles didn’t go back into the team when she regained fitness. One assumed she was signed to add depth to the Chelsea squad, but her performances have been so good that she’s now close to a guaranteed starter, and I can’t take anyone’s WSL team of the season seriously that doesn’t have her in it.
Recountings of this game will mostly centre Baltimore, but it should also be remembered that United actually started the contest fairly well. Last month, they gave Chelsea a huge scare in the WSL—pressing them high, disrupting their play, and creating scoring chances (that they then lacked the necessary ruthlessness to make the most of)—and. their performance merited more than the eventual 0-1 loss.
With this template set, it was axiomatic that United would try something similar at Wembley. Once again, they tried to deny Chelsea time on the ball, often going player vs. player out of possession, particularly Grace Clinton, who consistently made Kiera Walsh’s acquaintance, following her around the pitch in the early exchanges. Yet, one clear area of difference from the earlier WSL game between these sides was Chelsea’s formation. Manager Sonia Bompastor changed her defence from a back four to a three at the end of the season, and continued to do so here. Was she still stung by being wrung out by Barcelona in the Champions League and wanted more defensive security? Was it a way to integrate record signing Naomi Girma into the XI without having to drop Natalie Bjorn? Or was it (and is my personal suspicion) that Bompastor has concerns over Niamh Charles defensively, and thinks she’s better suited as a wing-back (knowing Lucy Bronze is fully capable of performing the same role on the other flank)?