Here’s John Brewin’s match report:
And that’s your lot for this one. Thanks for reading - goodbye!
“If we hadn’t have gone down to ten we would’ve liked to have gone for the win,” says Marc Skinner, when asked if he was happy with a point.
This tweet sort of makes is sound like some mystical force prevented Chelsea from winning, but it was entirely their fault. Even without the penalty save, they had enough chances to bury Birmingham.
Somehow it ends goalless here in the Midlands, as Birmingham goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger earns her side a point with a string of fine saves, including one to deny Karen Carney from the penalty spot #CFCW pic.twitter.com/hQvHZgiekK
— Chelsea FC Women (@ChelseaFCW) October 21, 2018
Another game, another frustration for Chelsea. That’s their fourth draw from six games so far this season, and while Birmingham started the day second in the table only on goal difference, and thus perhaps a point would make a decent result, Emma Hayes can’t be entirely happy with it. Chelsea had enough possession and enough chances to win the game, not least the penalty missed by Karen Carney.
Full-time: Birmingham City 0-0 Chelsea
Peeeeeeeeeeeeeep.
90 mins +4: Kirby slips a neat pass through to Ji, but there’s Berger again, sliding out of her box to intercept. Change for Birmingham - Emma Follis, who as Birmingham’s striker has basically been a spectator, is replaced by Lucy Quinn.
90 mins +3: Carter crosses from deep, but it sails straight into Berger’s arms. Not happening for Chelsea...
90 mins + 2: Five minutes added time, and Chelsea celebrate by spurning another chance, Ji’s shot blocked by Mannion.
90 mins: Kirby gets the ball and drives towards goal, but seems to dither over the shot and doesn’t commit to it. Her shot is once again blocked by a Birmingham defence that has been superb today.
87 mins: Brilliant save from Berger, as from the free-kick Ji finds herself in space in the box, she heads towards the roof of the net and the keeper flings herself up and tips over.
86 mins: A supporter laments “Oh no, not again” as Birmingham once more give the ball away in their own defensive third. They concede a free-kick, as Chelsea bring Engman on for Spence.
Red card for Birmingham!
Brainless stuff from Ladd who - already on a yellow card - charges in and takes out Spence from behind. A second booking is duly issued, and Blues will have ten players for the last five minutes.
83 mins: And another: Mayling goes over on her ankle. She’s limping, but will probably be OK to continue.
81 mins: Another Birmingham player is in the wars, this time Wellings.
80 mins: Again Chelsea make their way into the Birmingham box, but again they dither, Bachmann this time the culprit. If they don’t win this game, it will be entirely their fault.
78 mins: A break in play as Staniforth receives some treatment, but it looks like she’ll be OK to continue.
76 mins: A rare attack for Birmingham, the ball is clipped over the top and Lindahl has to come off her line to claim the ball - which she does, but wipes out her own defender, Eriksson, as well.
75 mins: Chelsea really cannot buy a goal at the moment.
Saved!
Karen Carney, former Birmingham hero steps up...but Berger saves! It went to her left and was at the cliched ‘nice height’, but it was still a fine stop.
Penalty to Chelsea!
At first glance this looks harsh. Kirby intercepts a backpass but instead of shooting squares to Ji, but just as she draws her foot back to shoot Harrop arrives with a heavy but fair-looking challenge...yet the referee points to the spot!
72 mins: Granted, Birmingham haven’t exactly looked deadly in attack, but you do wonder whether Chelsea will pay for this profligacy...
71 mins: Smartly taken free-kick puts Ji behind a napping defence, she as usual looks for Kirby but her shot is deflected high in the air, and loops over the bar. From the corner, Eriksson arrives at pace in the area and meets the header unmarked, but the ball skips off her forehead and wide. Careless, that: she was eight or nine yards out and on her own, should really have scored.
69 mins: Again Birmingham donate the ball to Chelsea just outside their own area, but again Chelsea can’t take advantage. That must have happened at least three times so far.
68 mins: Harrop slices a pass out of play on the left, and the pitchside mics very clearly pick up a large expletive. Why yes, as it happens it has been a quiet few minutes.
64 mins: Double sub for Chelsea, as Hayes tries to shake things up: on come Karen Carney and Ramona Bachmann, off come England and Cuthbert.
62 mins: Ji spins Scott like a top on the left, and is heading towards goal before Scott yanks her back by the arm. Obviously, she does into the book. From the free-kick, Berger just gets enough on a fingertip push away from the back post to divert it away from England.
60 mins: Chances coming thick and fast for Chelsea now. Again Ji times a pass to Kirby nicely, but her left-footed shot is blocked well Sargaent. Then Spence tries a low cross from the right, but once more it’s blocked. For all Chelsea aren’t making the best of the possession they have in the attacking third, Birmingham have defended well.
59 mins: Chelsea again press and win the ball in their own attacking third, Ji feeds Kirby who in turn squares to Cuthbert, but her first touch is poor and thus doesn’t have the space to take a proper shot.
57 mins: A ball over the top looks for the run of Kirby, and she collects but is crowded out as a combination of Sargeant and Mannion bundle the ball away.
54 mins: Chelsea go close. Cuthbert takes a corner from the left, looking initially like she’s scuffed it to the near post, but on closer inspection it looks like a deliberate ploy as Kirby flicks towards goal, but it’s just too close to Berger.
50 mins: Chelsea have to do a bit of defending, after a cross by Mayling from the left is sliced clear by Eriksson. Follis was lurking and she needed to get there. The subsequent corner is wasted though, a cross from the right floating over everyone like a balloon let go by a careless child.
48 mins: Berger almost gives away a big chance, passing the ball straight to Cuthbert on the edge of the Birmingham area, but she’s just about dispossessed. Millie Bright then gets a deserved booking for a hefty foul on Ladd, crashing into the back of the Birmingham midfielder’s calves.
47 mins: ...but Cuthbert skims that free-kick beyond everyone in the box.
46 mins: We’re away again in the second-half, and straightaway Chelsea are on the attack, Ji’s shot from distance blocked. Spence is then fouled and they have a free-kick from a dangerous position on the left...
Bit of a stop-start half. Chelsea have been the better team but haven’t made the most of their territorial dominance, and while Birmingham were disrupted by that injury to Ewers, they haven’t been able to launch too many meaningful attacks.
Half-time: Birmingham City 0-0 Chelsea
Peeeeeeeeeeep.
45 mins +3: Chelsea a little frustrated as another attack breaks down. They’ve had the majority of the attacking ball but haven’t done enough with it so far.
45 mins +1: Plenty of injury-time, obviously: five minutes of it are signalled.
45 mins: After a break when Harrop gets some treatment (for a clash of knees with Carter), Birmingham waste the corner, a cross half cleared then they give away a free-kick when Ji is fouled.
42 mins: Birmingham now passing it around neatly in their own penalty area. This is high wire football. Still, on that occasion it works quite nicely, as they sweep up the pitch and attack the Chelsea area from the right, Staniforth winning a corner when her cross is put behind.
39 mins: A couple of Chelsea attacks fizzle: first when England is penalised for a foul in the Birmingham area, the second when Spence’s forceful pass into the box gets away from Kirby.
37 mins: A quiet few minutes. Birmingham are still struggling to create a huge amount in attack. When they do get into Chelsea’s half - which isn’t often - they aren’t decisive enough to make it stick.
34 mins: Eesh, Chelsea should be ahead. They work a nice short corner, and the cross from the left finds Kirby in a bit of space about eight yards out. She stoops - which gives you an idea of how low the cross was allowed to get - and glances a header, but glances it straight at the keeper. A yard either side and that would have been the lead.
33 mins: Ji and Kirby combine again, this time to tee up Cuthbert, whose shot from just outside the box is deflected by Mannion behind for a Chelsea corner.
31 mins: Birmingham almost get themselves into more trouble with this strict policy of passing at the back: Wellings is hunted down by a couple of Chelsea attackers, and is nearly dispossessed on the edge of her own box, but more by luck than judgement gets away with it. That’s going to bite them at some point, though.
28 mins: Brilliant work from Ji, playing a fantastic pass through for the run of Kirby, but her stabbed finish is well saved by Berger. Chelsea on top at the moment.
27 mins: A rare Birmingham attack, as Wellings cuts in from the right, but she snatches at a shot that is easily blocked.
26 mins: In unsurprising news, Ewers has been taken to hospital to get that shoulder looked at.
25 mins: Chelsea go close: England picks up the ball in space around 25 yards out in the left channel, shoots low and it flicks the outside of the near post.
24 mins: Birmingham are still passing the ball deliberately out of defence, but Mannion briefly shows some initiative by driving out from the back. Eventually the ball reaches Chloe Arthur about 25 yards out who shoots, but it goes well wide.
22 mins: Potential chance disappears for Chelsea as England gets the ball on the left, the hesitates before playing to the overlapping Andersson, by which time the left-back had checked her run and the ball rolls out for a goal-kick.
21 mins: Finally - partly down to an extended period of time when the ball stayed in play, but partly due to them just being slow in bringing someone on - Harriet Scott comes on to replace Ewers, some eight minutes after the injury.
19 mins: Still no substitute for Birmingham...
18 mins: The short-handed Blues almost suffer for it, as Ji shifts the ball in space across the edge of the box and Drew Spence shoots, but it’s with her weaker left foot and keeper Berger saves fairly easily.
17 mins: Obviously Ewers can’t continue, but weirdly Birmingham haven’t brought a substitute on yet: it was clear a change would have to be made, and they’ve had four minutes to prepare someone...
16 mins: Ewers is finally helped to her feet and is guided off the pitch, extremely slowly and she looks in some pain. One doesn’t wish to diagnose from afar, but you’d be surprised if that was anything other than a dislocation of the left shoulder.
15 mins: Ewers is still on the ground and a stretcher is coming on. The Birmingham physio has signalled to the bench that she’ll have to come off, and it looks pretty serious.
13 mins: Ji muscles Ewers off the ball in midfield and slips a pass through to Kirby, but it’s just too far in front of her. More pressingly, Ewers fell extremely heavily on her left shoulder after that challenge and hasn’t really moved since.
12 mins: From that free-kick Cuthbert swings a good cross to the back post, but England can only glance a header wide. Really good chance that: she was only semi-marked and probably should’ve done better.
11 mins: Carter drives in for Chelsea from the right, but is sandwiched by a couple of Birmingham defenders. Referee Amy Fearn decides that at least one of them deserves a booking, so issues a yellow card to Ladd.
8 mins: Birmingham pass the ball around the back again, but lose possession when Harrop tries to switch from left to right, skimming a pass towards Arthur that is too far ahead of her and goes out for a throw. Interesting tactic this: it might work, but it might just invite pressure on them from Chelsea’s forwards.
5 mins: First chance, and it’s Chelsea’s. Beth England stabs a pass through to Fran Kirby, who checks to make a bit of space in the box and shoots left-footed, but it’s blocked before it can trouble the Birmingham goal.
3 mins: Slightly scrappy start to the game. Neither side have really been able to put their foot on the ball just yet. Birmingham slowly building from the back, knocking the ball around at their own leisure.
1 min: We’re away. The sun is actually so bright that it’s causing some of the players a few problems, and it’s quite difficult to pick out the white touchlines. Pray for your liveblogger.
The captains are cossing the toin. Looks like Chelsea will kick off, wearing all yellow, while the home side Birmingham are in their blue shirts and white shorts.
The teams are out. As is the sun. Lovely.
Some pre-match reading. Quite a story, this...
Team news
TEAM: Here's how the Blues line-up for today's game against @ChelseaFCW.
— Birmingham City Women (@BCFCwomen) October 21, 2018
📋 #BluesLIVE pic.twitter.com/iMqTWhjjGR
Today's team to play Birmingham...#CFCW pic.twitter.com/Ta5AARR9EC
— Chelsea FC Women (@ChelseaFCW) October 21, 2018
Preamble
What to make of Chelsea’s start to the season? The team who sashayed to the WSL title last season have just one win from their opening five games this term, and come into this one on the back of a wounding 5-0 hammering by Arsenal last week. So bad was the performance and potential after-effects that Emma Hayes had to rely on some slightly unconventional methods to comfort her team. “I’m a mother, so it’s really easy for me to do that,” she said. “I just showed my maternal side and reminded them it’s really not that grim, that is the reality.”
Hayes has of course been through enough to put a mere defeat in perspective. And Chelsea did bounce back with a win over Fiorentina in the Champions League. But even at this early stage of the campaign, there’s a danger of Chelsea being cut adrift of the leaders: they only have one win, and if results go against them in this round then they could find themselves nine points behind Arsenal already.
Or, indeed, Birmingham City. Marc Skinner’s side have only lost once so far, to Manchester City a couple of weeks ago, and have kept clean sheets in winning the other four games. Is this success unexpected? Perhaps, but it means this is already a must-win game for Chelsea, the team that beat all others last term.
Kick-off: 12.30 BST.
