Having lifted the Women’s FA Cup at Wembley last week with a 1-0 win over Manchester United at Wembley, Chelsea have a chance to secure an unprecedented third consecutive Double, as they currently sit two points clear of the Red Devils in top spot in the Women’s Super League table, with two matches remaining.

The first of those sees Emma Hayes’s Blues hosting third-placed Arsenal in our penultimate league fixture at Kingsmeadow at 12.30pm on Sunday, with our closest challengers United then facing local rivals Manchester City, fourth in the WSL table, at 6.45pm.

With so much at stake, whatever happens one thing is certain, it is set up to be a great day of entertainment for women’s football as the top four take each other on in a potentially crucial double-header.

‘It’s four top teams,’ said Hayes. ‘You’re watching four of the best in the country vying for a combination of winning the league and Champions League places, or someone missing out.

‘It’s remarkable our league has reached this point where four teams are pushing in the last couple of games. That’s why our league, particularly in Europe, stands apart from anything else. You’re watching a game that’s got some of the best talent on show, and the best fans.

‘I love these games against Arsenal, I’ve made no secret of that. I don’t think we’ve performed at our best against Arsenal, particularly the last game. Arsenal have shown their spirit, their qualities, even with their injuries. They are a top team, they are deserving of all of the good stories that are coming their way because I think they’ve been a fantastic team this year.

‘They’ve shown through adversity they can cope and they have players that can step up and I know Jonas will probably be proud of his team for that reason. So I think it will be a cracker, two top teams on show and let’s hope the sun’s out.’

While this season’s title race remains wide open, as Hayes alluded to, with all of the top three still in with a chance of being crowned champions, Chelsea are the only side with the possibility of securing the WSL trophy this weekend.

If we beat Arsenal at Kingsmeadow and Man Utd fail to win against City in the later kick-off, then we will end Sunday with an insurmountable lead, but Hayes is adamant that she isn’t looking at anything other than what her team must do in a tough match against the Gunners.

‘There’s zero chance that I would ever let my head think about winning anything before it’s won,’ she continued. ‘You’ve just got to focus on what you can do, just try and keep chalking up results. That’s the priority, just think about that, don’t think about the game later on in the day and what the outcome of that might be.

‘First of all we have to be really respectful, we haven’t won anything. We’re going to play arguably one of the best teams in Europe this year on Sunday and that will be extremely challenging. Arsenal are a top team, so I’m not thinking about the outcome.’

It was put to Hayes that, if the Blues were to be crowned champions on Sunday, it could be a bit of an anticlimax due to our match being the first of the two. However, she is quite happy with the way the schedule has formed, although not for the reasons you might expect as she revealed she already has plans for the rest of her Sunday, which don’t involve watching the Manchester derby.

‘I absolutely prefer the earlier game because you get some of your afternoon back! My son didn’t want to go to school on Friday, he wanted a three-day weekend, so I promised him on Sunday afternoon I will take him out on his new bike.

‘I’ll take him and his cousins for a little roll around north London, he will come first Sunday afternoon. Of course, someone will tell me, but I’m pretty certain I won’t be sitting down and watching it at home.

‘We won a league in Covid once when it was given to us over the telephone, so nothing’s going to get more anticlimactic than that.’