Eriksson and her team-mates will take on London rivals Arsenal at the Emirates later today in a game that will be shown live on Sky Sports.

Chelsea won the WSL, the Continental League Cup and the Community Shield during our 2020/21 campaign, and Eriksson believes the quality in the squad can see the Blues reach even higher levels this season.

Eriksson said: ‘I’m really looking forward to the game. It’s been a long time since we played together in a competition with Chelsea.

‘It’s really nice to be back with the team, back with the girls and working towards new goals and new heights.

‘It’s going to be really interesting to see where this season can take us. We have so much quality in the squad and I’m really optimistic about the season.’

Our opponents Arsenal have a new manager at the helm and with new recruits added to their squad, Eriksson expects a tough opening day fixture.

Eriksson added: ‘Arsenal are a team that have recruited really well. They have a new coach, a Swedish coach. It’s always good to see coaches coming over from Sweden.

‘They are going to bring a really strong team and it’s going to be a big challenge for us. They are a little bit ahead in their preparations because they’ve had the Champions League qualification to get ready for.

‘It’s going to be a tough start for us, but we will be ready and on our toes from the beginning.’

This weekend will see the return of away days for our Blues supporters, and Eriksson says the return of our travelling fans will give the team a huge boost.

‘They will help us massively,’ said Eriksson. ‘We really missed them last year. The year before that, they helped us find that edge when we were in troubled situations. When we needed some extra energy, they were the ones who gave us that.

‘I know that they are so devoted, so they are going to follow us up and down the country. We can’t wait to have them back and it was so nice to see them at our game against Aston Villa.

‘They know how much we appreciate their support and it’s going to mean so much to have them at the Emirates with us.’

Today’s game kicks off at 12.30pm and will be available to watch live on Sky Sports Main Event.

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