"I'm from a council estate, trust me, pressure was putting money on the table to pay the bills as a child. This is not pressure," Emma Hayes responded when asked what it was like to be the biggest name in women's football and coach one of the biggest teams in the sport in Friday's press conference.
"Look at the rise in costs for people to pay their bills. This is far from pressure. This is a joy." Even on the eve of what most would consider a nerve-shredding occasion that will define the Blues WSL campaign, Hayes remained humble, reflective of the environment she has cultivated from Cobham to Kingsmeadow.
Hayes represents more to Chelsea than just a coach. She has become a spokesperson for the club, a figure supporters feel connected to whenever she speaks about the team, tactics or wider societal issues.
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"This is joy. This is pleasure. This is a release". Hayes continued when asked again about handling pressure. Not only did her responses reflect the grounded nature of the Chelsea coach, but also the culture that's been created around a squad that's kept on winning.
Even with the uncertainty over the club's ownership, with Todd Boehly hoping to seal a deal to take over the London club in the coming days, Chelsea have remained focused and on course to retain their league title against an equally competitive Arsenal side, who beat the Blues on an opening day back in September and sit only one point behind Chelsea heading into the final day, beating Spurs at The Emirates on Wednesday night.
Following the goalless stalemate between both sides in February, Chelsea has won their next eight league games. Scoring 28 goals and only conceding three. There has almost been an auto-pilot nature to the way the Champions have moved through the gears, not always performing as dominantly as they did in the 9-0 win at Leicester but reverting to the muscle memory that has captured the previous two league titles.
Manchester United offers a tricky test, as Marc Skinner's side still hopes to clinch a final Champions League spot over their local rivals Manchester City. In September, the reverse fixture brought an emphatic 6-1 win for Chelsea on the road with five different goalscorers, including a double for Sam Kerr.
"Everyone thought it might come down to the final day, and at last, it has." Rob Pratley, who covers the women's team for The Chelsea Social, tells football.london ahead of Sunday.
"I think this match is particularly special to the team because it represents a chance to do something unprecedented in the WSL era. No side has defended the title three years running. Emma Hayes has constantly played down the chances of winning until recent weeks, but ever since overtaking Arsenal, it's become clear that she wants it.
"By hook or by crook, she wants this win. After a disappointing UWCL run, it looked like the season could fizzle out, but Chelsea have dug in, clawed their way back and have destiny in their hands. There are going to be tears of sadness saying goodbye to Ji So-Yun, Jonna Andersson and Drew Spence, but hopefully, they will be mixed with tears of joy and set us up well for an FA Cup Final showdown against Manchester City, with revenge on our mind after the Continental Cup Final."
There is the chance to secure the double at Wembley a week later, which will give the departing trio of Ji, Andersson and Spence their official send-off, but for Kingsmeadow, it could prove a dramatic ending to three players who have all been heavily involved in the evolution under Hayes for most of the past decade.
Winning has become part of the culture under Hayes. An unrelenting focus persists on the pitch and the dominance domestically best emphasises that quality even if the clamour for Champions League glory will remain heading into next season.
Probably the line that hit most in a very relaxed pre-match presser with Hayes' summary of the mindset that has been forged with the players "The work we do in-house over a long time is to make sure that players understand that being a good professional is not a Mercedez-Benz and a washbag". Hayes remains grounded, it is now on the players to take the final step.
