Chelsea find themselves in a period of transition, and head coach Sonia Bompastor acknowledges that rebuilding a club of this stature takes time. Speaking to Sky Sports ahead of the new Women's Super League campaign, Bompastor offered a candid assessment that goes beyond typical pundit chatter. Over the past two seasons the Blues have undergone significant upheaval, beginning with Bompastor’s appointment as Emma Hayes’ successor. The shock exit of Paul Green, who had jointly overseen the women’s side with Hayes, added another layer of change.
Hayes and Green had guided Chelsea to an era of unprecedented triumphs, a benchmark that is difficult to maintain and even harder to replicate. Bompastor’s first season delivered an unbeaten domestic treble, a feat many attribute in part to Hayes’ lingering influence. However, her second campaign laid bare the reality that Chelsea were no longer the dominant force they once were; a new chapter was clearly on the horizon.
Entering her third pre‑season, Bompastor says she now feels fully backed by the club to shape that future. "I think now I understand what the club is about a lot more," she told Sky Sports. "I also understand what we want to achieve and bringing my input into that. It's good to be in a place where I feel the confidence and the trust coming from the hierarchy in the club.
As much as I know my job, we need to get good results in order for me to stay as long as possible, but it's also important to feel like we also have time to rebuild the team in order for us to compete against the best." Last season Chelsea captured only the League Cup and slipped to third place behind Manchester City and Arsenal – the first time in six years they failed to win the WSL title. Bompastor reflected on that outcome: "We wanted last season to be a more successful season because Chelsea is a club who is used to winning. We only won one trophy, but if you analyse it, we have some good learnings to take and that's really important for us to reflect on." She emphasized the importance of culture, standards and daily behaviours both on and off the pitch.
"We spoke a lot about the environment and the culture we want to create here at Chelsea. It's a lot about standards, behaviours, how you show up every day, how much you are committing to work hard to achieve your goals and what are the type of behaviours you want to show up every day, off and on pitch.
Who do we want to be as a team? How do we want people to talk about Chelsea? These things are really important for us to be able to achieve the goals we have." The summer window has already hinted at a fresh start, especially in terms of personnel. Long‑time stalwarts have departed: former captain Millie Bright retired, prolific striker Sam Kerr moved back to the United States, and midfielders Niamh Charles, Guro Reiten and Johanna Rytting Kaneryd also left.
Bompastor admitted the loss of such influential figures affects the club’s culture: "We lost some really important players in terms of the environment and culture. Some of them had been here for many years and it's difficult to replace them. So it's for us, the staff and club, to think about how and what is the best way to replace them.
It's about the recruitment, but also again linked back to the environment and the culture we want to create." Chelsea’s recruitment strategy now blends experience with youth, a philosophy embodied by recent signings Katie McCabe and 18‑year‑old prospect Nelly Las. Bompastor praised McCabe’s immediate impact on squad standards and leadership, while highlighting Las’s versatility and potential: "It's important to have the right balance between experienced players, but also the youth into the squad. Players having versatility to play in different positions is also really important for me.
I'm a manager who really loves to work with young players, to invest time to develop them and I'm really keen to bring these players into the squad and see how they can develop to contribute to the success we will have in the future." The pressure to win at Chelsea is relentless, and the team must juggle preserving its storied legacy with forging a new identity under Bompastor’s guidance. Senior figures, regardless of tenure, are expected to step up. Defender Ellie Carpenter, a recent addition who already boasts multiple trophies, sees herself taking on a leadership mantle: "Chelsea are going through a bit of a transition phase at the moment. A lot of legends have gone and they left such a great legacy.
Now it's our turn to do that, follow in their footsteps and to build on what Chelsea is as a club. Our aim this season is to fight for those trophies back and show what Chelsea is about.
We want to do it as a team, winning in that way and enjoying it and hopefully getting the results on the way as well." One trophy still eludes the Blues: the UEFA Women’s Champions League. Historically, Chelsea’s recruitment has been geared toward European glory, assuming domestic honours would follow. Bompastor herself is a Champions League winner with Lyon, and her squad includes former champions such as Melvine Malard, Kadeisha Buchanan, Katie McCabe, and Lucy Bronze, who has now secured five European titles – albeit none in Chelsea colours.
The ambition is clear: "Winning the Champions League is one of the main goals for us. We'll work as hard as possible to achieve that and I know everyone is expecting Chelsea to always be at their best. The competition now in Europe is getting higher and higher. Many clubs now are in a position where they can compete to win the Champions League.
I don't want to shy away from us and our ambitions, but I also know it's difficult. But that's the one trophy we're missing in the club and we will try as hard as possible to fight for that." Carpenter echoed that sentiment, noting the blend of youth and experience will be vital: "It's always what Chelsea want. It's what their ambition is, what the fans want, what everyone here wants and what we work towards every day. This squad is young, but multiple people have won it in the team, so that helps a lot to bring the experience and what it takes to win.
But we're just going to go game‑by‑game this season. We don't want to put too much pressure on ourselves. When we're enjoying football, we're playing our best football." The scrutiny that comes with wearing the Chelsea badge is intense, and Bompastor admits it is a new challenge for her: "I've never been in a place before where the scrutiny is so high like at Chelsea, but I'm comfortable with it. It means people care about us and really think we are a really important club.
That's what comes with our standards and Chelsea being one of the best clubs in the world, so we need to get comfortable with that. We need to make sure when we go into the season, we don't have any regrets and we give our all any time we step into the pitch." In summary, the Blues are in the midst of a metamorphosis. Consistent evolution was a hallmark of Hayes’ tenure, and Bompastor hopes to continue that trajectory, blending seasoned leaders with emerging talent, reinforcing a winning culture, and finally adding the coveted Champions League trophy to Chelsea’s illustrious cabinet.