Chelsea Women sealed a spot in the semi-finals of Continental Tyres League Cup on Wednesday evening after a 3-1 victory over Aston Villa and Blues Vice-captain Millie Bright insists the win was down to the patience shown by the Blues.
Chelsea had to wait until the 55th minute to break the deadlock against Championship outfit Aston Villa when skipper Magda Eriksson headed in.Ji So-Yun doubled the advantage deep into the second half but a goal against the run of play from Villa’s striker Kerri Walsh gave the visitors hope with less than 10 minutes remaining. It was 16-year-old Emily Murphy dashed any hopes of a comeback for the Midlands club when the youngster scored from close range and Bright believes the key to the victory was the calmness and composure of the Blues performance.‘We expected a tough game, we don’t want to underestimate any of our opponents,’ Bright said.‘We knew it was going to be tough, they [Aston Villa] train full-time and they are looking to come into this league and these are the oppositions they want to play against.
‘We were always confident that we’d get the win and get the goals but it was just a matter of time really before we scored. We just had to stay patient, keep the ball moving and we’re working on being more ruthless.‘It was a great test and probably a bit sloppy from us at times but we got the win and we are into the next round and that’s all that matters really.’The 26-year-old defender shifted into midfield for the quarter-final clash versus Villa and the England international spoke about her positional switch up.‘I tend to get forward anyway so it’s kind of becoming more natural for me now,’ Bright said.‘Sometimes you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do and it was nice to get a run in the midfield and open my legs up a little bit and kind of come off the leash.
‘I have played there before, I started upfront and then moved into midfield so it is not the first time that I’ve done it and probably won’t be the last time I do it – it’s a good experience.’We are in the last four hat along with Arsenal, Manchester City and Manchester United, and will find out who our semi-final opponents are on Saturday as the draw is being made at 3.50pm on BT Sport 1.Next up for the Blues is Arsenal away in the WSL on Sunday, followed by a trip to Charlton Athletic as we embark on our 2019/20 FA Cup journey. Our next home game is on Sunday 2 February when we host West Ham for the second time this term. Kick-off is at 2pm and tickets can be purchased here!