Huge win for Man City at Chelsea opens up WSL title race
Huge win for Man City at Chelsea opens up WSL title race
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 Congratulations on the win. What's your emotion?
00:05 I'm really pleased. I think it's a big step for us. There's no doubt about that.
00:09 And I said that to the girls. I didn't like the second half again,
00:15 but because I think we can retain possession more or actually kill them off a little bit more.
00:19 We had some really good counter-attacking opportunities, but I understand the anxiety around it.
00:24 I mean, this team, Chelsea, have been really successful here, really successful in winning streaks.
00:30 And certainly their home form has been really good. So, yeah, like I say, really pleased.
00:35 Proud of the players. I thought we defended incredibly well.
00:40 And we've got eight games to go. We're excited about the challenge.
00:44 It's a big step, but that's all it is. It's three points and we move on to the next.
00:49 You mentioned the defensive record there. It's normally gone under the radar perhaps,
00:54 but obviously you've had the best performance from the girls.
00:57 Yeah, she gets stick from the crowd. I don't get it. I really don't get it.
01:01 Dodgy keeper and all that. You just think this is the keeper that's performing the best in the WSL.
01:05 We've conceded eight goals all season, which is really top.
01:09 And of course, there's lots of goals into that, all the way from Bunny at the front to Alex and Laia today were very good.
01:16 Lana comes on, makes an incredible block. Demi comes into the situation where she's not had minutes
01:21 and she's coming into a really fast game, same as for Angadal and Mary Fowler.
01:26 But yeah, just great credit to the girls. They've been really determined this season in terms of,
01:31 you know, where we came up short last season, what we probably needed to do.
01:35 We've suffered a little bit. I know Chelsea have as well with players.
01:38 We've suffered obviously losing Jill, but the reaction since then has been great.
01:42 I think five clean sheets on the bounce and some difficult games in there.
01:46 Yeah, it did great. It did really well for the goal.
01:50 She's so good, Jess, at driving in between lines.
01:53 And it was a great pick out for Bunny. And when Bunny gets in those situations, you really fancy her to score.
01:59 [INAUDIBLE]
02:16 I think the impact of Jill was, you know, if Jill was still fit,
02:19 she plays, she's a top player and she's really hit the ground running for the club.
02:23 But I've spoken about Jessie recently and she's always been there.
02:26 I think she's always been a player that has really interested me.
02:30 I mean, she helped us win our first trophy together as a team,
02:35 coming off the bench and showing real maturity from a young age.
02:39 She obviously had a good season last year, going and playing regularly at Everton.
02:44 And there were times last year I was monitoring her progress and I was like, you know,
02:49 as much as she's growing and developing elsewhere, we could really do with her here.
02:53 She's had to be patient, but her training levels and her attitude has been first class
02:57 and I think is a real example for any young player.
03:00 She's now broken into the England set-up as well.
03:03 We've adjusted her position a little bit, but I've always felt she's capable of playing in between the lines.
03:07 And, yeah, she picked up some good positions this evening and works tremendously hard off the ball as well.
03:13 [INAUDIBLE]
03:19 Yeah, yeah, yeah.
03:20 Yeah, well, she's capable. You look at Jess and you see physically, OK, she's not the biggest,
03:25 but her agility is very good. Her ball control and her technique is very, very good.
03:31 Always with Jess, it's always the thing that's going to make her world-class will be her final action.
03:36 But she's improving a lot on that, working hard with Sean in training
03:40 and she's really contributing to the team at the moment.
03:44 Gareth, congratulations. In terms of the league meetings, that's City's first away league win against Chelsea for eight years.
03:50 I'm wondering what that will do psychologically for your group, coming on one.
03:54 Yeah, I mean, it's nice for me. It's my first time I've won here.
03:57 I mean, I've not been successful here at all, which has frustrated me.
04:01 And, yeah, at times second half, you probably feel that Chelsea, with the amount of balls that they sling into the box,
04:07 that something's going to happen.
04:10 But I think all it is, is a step. It's a big step for us. There's no doubt about it.
04:15 I think we've kind of gone under the radar a little bit this season.
04:18 I think we've tried to play our game as much as we possibly can.
04:24 But we've added a bit of a steeliness and determination to our defending now.
04:27 So we work really hard on that. We're trying to improve our set plays a lot because we create a lot of corners and free kicks.
04:33 And, yeah, the signs are good, but it's just hard work from the players.
04:38 I have to say that the spirit in the club and the spirit in the team and the togetherness from players like Ruby Mace,
04:47 Esmé Morgan, who don't potentially get on the pitch for a long time, their attitude and their harmony is very, very good.
04:55 And we all know how unlucky you felt with the setting off in the reverse game.
04:58 Did football God shine on you with the penalty decision with Alex on the rear end in the first half?
05:05 I don't know. I'm not sure which one you're talking about. I'd have to see it.
05:09 I've said before that the game at home, our beef wasn't with Chelsea.
05:13 I think it was obviously the officials. And I was thinking, right, OK, if they're going to be this tight on timings, then let's see.
05:18 We're going to see a lot of red cards. But as usual, it seems like they step back down and realise it's a bit crazy.
05:27 But, yeah, I think even when you look at that game, the signs were there.
05:30 The determination in the team to concede in the 96th minute and we had to have Alana off the pitch because the medic came on.
05:36 It was frustrating. We were down to seven, I think, at that time. Eight, was it? Yeah.
05:40 So, yeah, big strides. But again, we've got a lot of work to do. We've got eight games left.
05:45 We've got another couple of competitions to look forward to, but we just attack the next game.
05:50 Recover now is really difficult. We have a quick turnaround against Everton.
05:54 We're at the first game Saturday morning. We've still got some of our players who are playing on Wednesday.
05:59 This stage of the season, you want to try and keep your players as fresh as you possibly can.
06:04 And that's really difficult.
06:06 Sounds good to me. Yeah, good sounds. Nice tunes.
06:11 One of the criticisms of your team over the last few years is that sometimes the performances are backed up by the results.
06:18 You mentioned that second half maybe wasn't as enjoyable to watch, but the players juggling themselves over the line,
06:25 is that what you think you've got?
06:31 Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I mean, second half, we can play so much better than that.
06:36 Our ball retention was... I don't even want to see the stats. It would be horrible.
06:40 Whereas first half, I thought we controlled large parts of the game.
06:43 We really worked their forward pairing to allow Lyle or Alex to step in.
06:48 So, yeah, there's a lot about that game I didn't like.
06:51 But I think, like I say, sometimes it's really hard for players to play the game and not the occasion.
07:00 And second half, we played the occasion a little bit.
07:03 But like I say, no criticism.
07:06 I think we have to give the players great credit for the way they handle things.
07:10 And like you say, I think we are really, really determined this season.
07:14 I think in the past, our performances have been quite good in certain games we've lost or drew.
07:20 But I think we've probably been a bit soft in those moments defensively.
07:23 Whereas now, I just think there's like this newfound kind of determination between the team.
07:31 Hi, Dan. Congrats on the win.
07:33 Just wanted to ask, what do you think this result says about how your team have adapted,
07:38 particularly since that loss against Brighton, in terms of how they've come up to this result?
07:43 Yeah, I mean, like the Brighton game, funny enough, talking about performances,
07:48 we weren't horrific.
07:50 We weren't. It was just sometimes you have those games where like, I thought we built up really well.
07:54 We stepped into the second half of their pitch, into the opposition half,
07:59 and then we just like were really loose for the final.
08:02 And then they have one opportunity and score. That's football.
08:05 Sometimes like the gods are against you sometimes, you know,
08:07 and they're probably with us a little bit in the second half today with certain situations.
08:11 But yeah, I think if you continually keep knocking on the door,
08:15 and I think there is a bit of a new feel about this group.
08:18 And also I feel that the fact that we've been together for a lot longer just allows you to really start to step and improve.
08:24 And that's really hard at the moment in the women's setup because the wages are going sky high.
08:32 The transfer fees are coming in.
08:34 It's hard to get players to sign for longer so that you can continue to work with them for a while.
08:38 But I think what you are seeing with this group of players now is a lot of the hard work that we've been putting in,
08:43 like not just pre-season, last season and in the way we train.
08:49 Hi guys. If you went back to October, December and now February,
08:53 what's your assessment of your team, of where it's at right now?
09:01 Well, I think we've kind of gone unbeaten since that Brighton game.
09:07 We lost to Arsenal, we lost to Brighton.
09:10 I think since then we've been pretty flawless.
09:14 We've played some big games, we've had some big moments, we've put in some really top performances.
09:19 I'll always look at the team and say, we're not there yet.
09:22 You're never there. You're never there to where you want it to be.
09:25 And like I say, second half, I want our team to come here and exploit even more what we had in the first half,
09:34 rather than shore it up and just get through.
09:37 But like I said to you, I also understand that part of it where the girls might be potentially anxious.
09:41 But I think we do our best stuff when we play in a calm manner with a steely determination.
09:46 And we had that tonight, second half.
09:48 It was really difficult because it was backs against the wall a little bit.
09:51 But I think we're a work in progress.
09:54 And I've always said this, and it's not a cop-out.
09:56 It's not like we haven't hidden our ambitions about what we want to do.
10:00 Every trophy we try to win, every competition that we go into, we try to win.
10:04 And we know how tough that is. Emma's been really successful here.
10:08 It's only myself and twice and Jonas once who's taken trophies outside of my period of time of being in the women's game.
10:15 So that just goes to show you that what they built here is what we're trying to achieve, for sure.
10:23 But it's really difficult. It's really difficult.
10:25 How do you build off that momentum now? The international break comes at a tricky moment.
10:34 I've always said the international break always comes at the wrong time.
10:40 So if you've just won or been on a run like we have, you don't want it to end.
10:44 If you've just lost a game, like we'd have lost tonight, you can't wait for the next game to get the players back again.
10:51 So it is what it is. The demands on the players are really high at the moment.
10:55 I think what we're doing quite well now is having good conversations with the nations because they want the best players.
11:00 Of course, I understand that. But we try to work together really hard to guarantee that we get the best of both worlds.
11:07 And players are able to be the best versions of themselves.
11:11 You must feel like you have the real bit between your teeth at the times of those now.
11:15 We do, but it's still Chelsea. Chelsea are the champions. They're still there.
11:20 It's a great move for us tonight and it's a big step, but we've got a lot of work to do.
11:26 Congratulations on your team's win tonight. Two questions for you really.
11:33 The first question is, what has been the key to tonight's win?
11:36 And also, where do you think City can improve?
11:41 Confidence, I think, was high going into the game.
11:45 I think this was just like the perfect time for us to play Chelsea, being three points behind in a good reign of form, keeping clean sheets.
11:54 I knew the margins were going to be tight. I said it on Sunday at Arsenal, it's going to be tight.
11:58 And yeah, I think that's one of the key things.
12:02 And the second bit about where we improve, how long have you got?
12:07 How big a newspaper have you got or a web? It's going to be a lot.
12:12 We need to improve a lot of things, a lot of things. But with the players and the team that we have and the group of staff,
12:18 we're really, really determined to just continually improve.
12:23 And we've got really hungry players that want to do that.
12:26 So you've now 11 points, but there's a plus 28 goal difference to the late game player.
12:33 At what point does goal difference become a factor you consider when you're talking about in-game management?
12:39 If not already, then why?
12:42 Yeah, we had a big shift when we beat Spurs 7-0.
12:46 Our goal difference went like huge in one game. So, you know, was our intention to go out and score that?
12:51 No, it's to win the game first and foremost. I think that's the most important thing.
12:55 So I'd like to say we were so strategically clever that we're thinking about, yeah, we're going for it to try and increase the goals.
13:03 Winning games is important. And of course, I think with the nature of the WSL, it's so tight.
13:09 In my time here, every league has gone to the final game. Every league title has gone to the final game of the season.
13:16 So obviously goals conceded and scored become important goal difference.
13:21 So, yeah, I think these types of games, you're never probably going to start running up huge scores.
13:28 But again, I think we always create chances. We're improving defensively as well.
13:32 So, you know, from last season, we expect those margins to be a bit better than what they were.
13:40 Cheers, guys. Thank you.
13:43 OK.
13:44 OK.
13:46 Thank you.
13:48 Thanks.
13:49 [BLANK_AUDIO]