Chelsea overcame a power outage at Stamford Bridge to end their winless run against Barcelona in the Women’s Champions League in a 1-1 draw.
Play was suspended for close to 10 minutes due to an outage at the stadium which cut all television feeds, meaning that VAR could not be in operation.
Goals from Ellie Carpenter and Ewa Pajor had left the game in the balance, but the hosts were left to rue missed chances for all three points.
Play was suspended in the first-half due to a power outage.
Sonia Bompastor’s side went into the contest having previously beaten their opponents just once in seven Champions League meetings, losing 8-2 on aggregate when the two sides met in last season’s semi-final.
Bompastor was without Sam Kerr, while club captain Millie Bright was dropped to the bench following her testing start to the campaign.
Ellie Carpenter fired Chelsea ahead following a blistering counter-attack
It mattered not though as Carpenter combined with Aggie Beever-Jones before driving forward and smashing the hosts ahead after a blistering counter-attack.
Ewa Pajor would ensure the lead did not last long, capitalising on some poor defending at a corner to level. However, Chelsea remained the team in command.
Barcelona celebrate Ewa Pajor’s equaliser against Chelsea
Wieke Kaptein was denied by both Cata Coll and the foot of the post on separate occasions before the game came to a halt following a power cut in the stadium.
That seemed to take the wind out of Chelsea’s sails as the momentum they built evaporated and the visitors began to control proceedings throughout the second half.
The introduction of Catarina Macario appeared to be the spark the Blues needed as the forward headed Chelsea back in front with her first touch, only for it to be ruled out for offside by the finest of margins.
Catarina Macario saw a goal with her first touch ruled out for offside
She then turned provider, setting up Carpenter for a glorious chance to grab a second, but the Australian dragged her effort wide from close range.
The game would remain level, meaning that Barcelona climb to the top of the Champions League standings on goal difference while Chelsea remain outside the top four required to automatically qualify for the quarter-finals.
Bompastor: We were the better team
Chelsea boss Sonia Bompastor speaking with BBC Sport:
“We were the better team tonight, we had a really good performance and created a lot of opportunities. We scored a great goal. I’m happy but frustrated because we could have won the game.
“Any time we play with this mindset and mentality, the players need to know how good we can be.
“We played against a strong opponent, everybody knows Barcelona’s qualities. To be able to have this performance against them was really positive.
Sonia Bompastor believes that her Chelsea side were the better team against Barcelona
“If you want to be perfect you have to be clinical and that is something we are working on, we won’t give up on that aspect.
“I helped them with different tactics from last season, so the game plan tonight was better than the one we did last season.
“The team need to be proud of the performance today, but also take belief and confidence from this performance.”
‘A proud draw for Chelsea’
Chelsea captain Erin Cuthbert speaking with ESPN:
“Tonight it was about how we performed. Earlier this year we didn’t put our best foot forward. Tonight is a performance to be proud of.
“It’s a good draw. It’s something to build on. The team worked tirelessly. Everybody worked in perfect synergy.
“You shouldn’t need any motivation to play for Chelsea. Every single game is a game you want to win.
“We were obviously disappointed with the offside goal. The fact we’re disappointed with not getting the win at home against Barcelona is a really good start for us. Two games left and we want to win both of them.”
