Chelsea marked Keira Walsh‘s first start for the club with a comfortable 2-0 win over West Ham to seal their spot in the Subway Cup final.
Walsh, who joined Chelsea on deadline day from Barcelona, will face harder assignments than Wednesday. The England international hardly broke stride in midfield as first-half goals from Johanna Rytting Kaneryd and Sjoeke Nüsken effectively wrapped up the game at the half-hour mark.
The win means Chelsea are now unbeaten in 22 games and into their sixth successive League Cup final, where they will face one of Manchester City or Arsenal.
Chelsea were in control from the get-go, hardly giving West Ham a sniff of the ball.
Such was their dominance that Rytting-Kaneryd’s opener in the 20th minute felt almost belated. The Sweden international created space for herself in the box with sharp footwork and lashed in a powerful shot at the near post that Kinga Szemik could only flap at.
The impact of the Walsh-Nusken pivot was immediately evident, with the former Barcelona midfielder’s assertive presence at the base of midfield giving Nusken the license to push higher up the field.
The Germany international’s goal was a direct reward for her pressing. She intercepted Katrina Gorry‘s pass across goal, traded passes with Guro Reiten before cooly finishing past Szemik.
West Ham failed to register a single shot before half-time and managed to muster only two in the second half despite Chelsea taking their foot off the pedal.
