Jess Carter believes Chelsea have “no choice” but to regroup quickly after their Champions League semi-final heartbreak.
Emma Hayes’s side suffered a 2-0 defeat at home to the holders, Barcelona, on Saturday, going out of the competition 2-1 on aggregate after claiming an impressive 1-0 first leg victory in Spain. Afterwards, the manager questioned the refereeing decisions that saw Kadeisha Buchanan sent off after two yellow cards and Barcelona awarded a penalty for a foul on Aitana Bonmatí.
Chelsea must go again against Liverpool on Wednesday night in their battle with Manchester City for the last trophy available to them in Hayes’s final season in charge of the club – the Women’s Super League title.
“You have no choice [but to regroup],” said Carter. “You’ve got to get up and go again. We’re back in tomorrow, we’ve got a game on Wednesday, you’ve got to dust yourself off and go again.”
On the decision to award Barcelona a penalty, after Carter seemed to nudge Bonmatí into Ashley Lawrence, the defender said: “I felt like it was a bit soft. I haven’t seen it back. I know there was contact with myself and Bonmatí, but I think she went down a bit soft. If it was anywhere else on the pitch you’d probably not give it. Maybe I’ve got to watch it back and see.”
Carter was exceptional in Chelsea’s back three across the two legs, having struggled in the final against Barcelona in 2021, but said her side needed to maintain possession and discipline for longer to compete. “I’m obviously disappointed,” said the 26-year-old. “After such a disciplined first leg I’m disappointed with the second leg. The first goal came from lack of discipline. You can’t give the ball to Barcelona for 90 minutes and expect to win a game to be honest.”
At the same stage last year, Chelsea lost 1-0 at home before a 1-1 draw away knocked them out, highlighting a need for them to be more resilient at Stamford Bridge. “The way we handled the first leg was excellent, with the discipline, and I think that’s what let us down today with our lack of tactical awareness in terms of taking the fouls when we needed to,” said Carter. “We let them dictate the whole way through unfortunately.”
On how important this game was for Hayes’ legacy, with the manager leaving the club at the end of the season to take over as head coach of the US women’s national team, Carter said: “It’s not about Emma today, it was just about Chelsea as a collective. We don’t play just for Emma, we play for ourselves and the fans and everything we all put into every game. Emma desperately wanted to win but no more than what we all did. We’re all equally disappointed today.”
Fran Kirby insisted Hayes’s legacy will not be defined by the Champions League exit. It is the only trophy the 47-year-old has not won with Chelsea. “We all know what Emma has done for the club, what so many of us have done for the club over so many years,” Kirby said. “We’re gutted we couldn’t get over the line today. What Emma has built here is not defined by one game.
“That’s the same for every single player in this team who has been here, Millie [Bright] who has been here for 10 years myself, I’ve been here for nine years. This one game doesn’t define anything for Emma or anyone else. She can leave the club very proud of everything she’s done and I hope that she takes that with her.”
