Sonia Bompastor says Chelsea’s Women’s Super League title win feels “a bit unreal” after they clinched top spot with a victory over Manchester United.
Chelsea only needed a point against the Red Devils after Arsenal opened the door with a 5-2 loss to Aston Villa earlier on Wednesday.
And the Blues took their chance, with Lucy Bronze heading in to earn a 1-0 victory at Leigh Sports Village and wrap up a sixth consecutive WSL title for the club, and a ninth overall.
Not including the inaugural WSL season, when Laura Harvey’s Arsenal won the title, Bompastor is the first manager to win the competition in her maiden campaign.
They remain unbeaten in the league this season, with this win setting a new record for the most consecutive games unbeaten in a single WSL campaign (20).
Having taken over from Emma Hayes at the end of last season, Bompastor had big shoes to fill, but is delighted with the team’s performance in her first year at the helm.
“It’s a great achievement. It feels a bit unreal,” Bompastor told Sky Sports. “I knew we had to fight until the end.
“For us to still be unbeaten and achieve what we just achieved is really good.
“Not easy to come as a new manager to a new country to adjust to a new league. I learned a lot, but I have a great bunch of players and great staff.
“This league is really competitive. For some people, they just think being Chelsea, it is really easy to achieve that. It’s not.
“We work really hard. We had the right mindset from the beginning of the season until now. I’m really happy for that, really pleased for that.”
The Blues came into this match on the back of their Champions League semi-final exit, having been knocked out by Barcelona 8-2 on aggregate.
They have moved up to 54 points in the league with this victory, though, and if they can win their final two matches, against Tottenham and Liverpool, they will set the record points total in a single WSL season (currently 58, set by Chelsea themselves in 2022-23).
“I feel great. For my first season, it feels amazing,” she told BBC Sport. “I want to thank my players; I want to thank the club to have me on board.
“For us to achieve that with two games left is a great achievement.
“I love to have the pressure [of replacing Hayes]. It makes me a better manager because I really have to focus.
“I have to thank my staff because I am not the only one. I feel home, it’s so nice to be part of Chelsea.”
Bompastor’s Blues also have an FA Cup final to look forward to. They will take on United on May 18.
