Imagine playing against a team of Erin Cuthberts. You would not be allowed a moment to realise what a frightening situation you had found yourself in, let alone the time to try and dance around the snapping challenges and evade the constant harrying. Win the ball and Cuthbert will chase you down; lose it and if you don’t close the space, she has the quality to make you pay for it, as she did against Manchester City by thundering an unstoppable shot in off the underside of the crossbar.
Chelsea have bigger stars, but arguably no player was more important to their 3-2 win at Wembley to retain the Women’s FA Cup. While it may have been Sam Kerr who scored the winner in extra time, as the Australian added two more goals to her sublime cup final record for Chelsea, it was Cuthbert who was everywhere else in behind. Chelsea were often outnumbered by City but the Scotland international ensured they were never overran.
