Chelsea beat Manchester City 1-0 to go top of WSL after early Buchanan change

The early change

Sonia Bompastor replaced Kadeisha Buchanan with Veerle Buurman early in the Women's Super League match at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, 14 November. The reports differ on timing, with one placing the switch at 11 minutes and others at 12. Buchanan, 31, had been cleared to play by Chelsea's medical team after a knock to the head in training on Friday, 13 November. Buurman is a 20-year-old Dutch centre-back. The change was not planned and Buchanan had not asked to come off, so Chelsea's players looked confused when the fourth official's board appeared. Buchanan walked straight down the tunnel with no apparent injury, clearly upset.

Bompastor later explained her reasoning, and she said she had seen the problem from the first minutes.

“I felt I was almost forced to do that. I know my player and she was not in the game.”

Bompastor also described the call as a risk, adding that it took courage to make it in the moment.

“You have to be brave to make that change in the moment.”

How the match turned

Buurman quickly took charge of Khadija Shaw, the City striker who had scored in nine consecutive WSL games before this match. Shaw did not record a shot on target, and Buurman helped a Chelsea back line that had conceded five goals in the league this season look more stable. Melvine Malard went off with a hamstring injury at around 30 to 35 minutes, and Aggie Beever-Jones came on in her place. Chelsea had made three changes by the second half, including the withdrawal of Sandy Baltimore at the break.

Baltimore's strike, from outside the area, came on the stroke of half-time. The BBC described it that way, while The Guardian placed it in added time at the end of the first half. Chelsea had missed several chances before the goal, and it gave them a lead they had earned.

Yamashita's red card

City pressed after the interval but could not find an equaliser. In the 75th minute, goalkeeper Ayaka Yamashita raced out of her box to intercept a pass behind the defence aimed at Alyssa Thompson. She mistimed the run, bundled into Thompson and was sent off with a straight red card. Goalkeeper Eartha Cumings came on for City, and Aggie Beever-Jones hit the post moments later. City manager Andree Jeglertz said the Buchanan change had not 'changed the picture', though the game was not over and City still had chances.

Table and aftermath

Chelsea entered the match two points behind City, with neither side having lost a WSL game this season. They now sit a point above City at the top of the table and remain unbeaten. City's unbeaten run ended, having scored in each of their previous 21 games in all competitions. Bompastor said she had given Buchanan only a few words after full time and expected her assistant, Camille Abily, to have spoken to her too.