Chelsea will not take West Ham lightly on Wednesday evening when they face each other for the third time this season.
Emma Hayes' side go into the game on the back of a historic FA Cup final win over Manchester United on Sunday. Sam Kerr's second-half strike made the difference and secured the London club's third consecutive trophy in the competition.
Attention now turns to the WSL and the prospect of completing a domestic double. Another league title is within touching distance for Chelsea, but they must first make sure they overcome West Ham, Arsenal and Reading.
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The Hammers are on a nine-game run without a win in all competitions and they've picked up just two draws in that time. Their last victory came in January when they beat National League opposition Wolves 2-0 in the fourth round of the FA Cup.
"What I know is when you play a team that have lost that much, you should always be wary of their threats," Hayes told the media pre-match on Tuesday. "No one likes losing that much and I'm sure Paul (Konchesky) and the players don't.
"Every time we play them it is a physical, tough match up. We expect it to be the same (on Wednesday)."
Chelsea have beaten West Ham in both meetings this season. The first was a 3-1 victory in the WSL back in September and later a 7-0 thrashing in the Conti Cup in February.
However, Hayes is conscious of the emotional and physical toll Sunday's FA Cup final will have on her players and highlighted the importance of getting their recovery right.
She continued: "It takes a lot more out of you if you lose. When you win, everything feels a little lighter. I said at the weekend, I thought our brains were tired more than anything else.
"People would assume tiredness is to do with the legs. For me, it's not even about getting our legs fresh for Wednesday, we need to get our brains right, our sleeping patterns right because it's really hard to sleep off the back of games like that on Sunday."
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