Sam Kerr’s early header set Chelsea on their option to a 3-1 win at Leicester that secured their Girls’s Champions League spot for subsequent season, and made the Australian the Blues’ all-time WSL prime goalscorer.
Kerr, who has been reported to be leaving the membership this summer season and be part of NWSL enlargement staff Denver Summit, gave Chelsea the right begin on the King Energy Stadium as she rose to nod dwelling Niamh Charles’ cross after 13 minutes for her sixty fourth purpose within the prime flight.
“It’s a big achievement for me, it’ll probably sink in in 10 years time when I’m retired!” she later instructed BBC Sport. “Every goal for me is really important, and to do it for a big club like Chelsea is really special.”
If she does depart west London, the Blues is not going to be wanting one other supply of objectives with Lauren James at her proficient finest so as to add Chelsea’s second and third earlier than half-time in actual fashion.
The England winger first took a contact 20 yards out earlier than bending a surprising strike past a helpless Katie Keane, then six minutes later beat the younger goalkeeper once more with an unstoppable free-kick from contained in the D which cannoned in off the underside of the crossbar.
“Two steps, not bad huh?” she joked to BBC Sport about her run-up. “I was looking where the keeper was, it was quite close to be fair. A few people thought I wouldn’t go over, but the keeper gave me the other side and it went top corner.”
The sport had the sensation of a repeat efficiency of Leicester’s 7-0 hammering at Arsenal on Wednesday, till the hosts have been gifted a purpose earlier than the break when Lucy Bronze’s blind backpass was intercepted by Shannon O’Brien, who beat an out-of-position Livia Peng with a wise end.
Regardless of that strike, Sonia Bompastor nonetheless felt comfy sufficient with the scoreline to withdraw each James and Erin Cuthbert at half-time, although she could have been questioning whether or not she had gone too early when the Foxes flew out of the traps from the interval.
It proved solely a quick fear for the Blues, nevertheless, as their bottom-of-the-table hosts failed to significantly check Peng once more because the guests ran out comfy winners to cement a top-three end and Champions League soccer subsequent season.
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