Chelsea women's player ratings vs Liverpool: Lauren James' magic the difference as Sonia Bompastor's Blues secure vital WSL win

Lauren James' brilliance helped Chelsea boost their chances of qualifying for next season's Women's Champions League in an important 2-0 win over Liverpool on Sunday, the Blues securing all three points at a time when plenty of negative noise has swirled around the club. Disappointing results led to questions being asked of head coach Sonia Bompator and her future, while the departure of head of women's football Paul Green this week caused a real stir. But the players did all they could do on Sunday, seeing off a revitalised Liverpool side thanks to goals from James and Sjoeke Nusken.

This was not a vintage performance from Chelsea. The Reds started brilliantly and their pressing put the Blues under real pressure at times, with Alice Bergstrom even finding the back of the net after just four minutes, only for the goal to be ruled out because she had committed a handball offence before the finish.

Without a clear No.9 in the starting line-up, Chelsea lacked a focal point in attack, with Alyssa Thompson, James and Nusken all hovering around that area where a Sam Kerr or Aggie Beever-Jones would usually be, and that ambition to show fluidity in a set-up with unique quirks and imbalances didn't have the desired effect initially, as the lack of structure instead proved to be an issue.

However, Chelsea still had enough quality in their line-up to create moments and it was James who provided one just before half time, delivering a teasing low cross that Nusken brilliantly tucked away to break the deadlock. She then topped that just past the hour, darting in from the left and firing a wonderful strike from the edge of the box beyond Jennifer Falk to put the result beyond doubt and allow the Blues to open up a four-point gap to fourth-placed Arsenal, whose clash with Brighton was postponed on Sunday.

GOAL rates Chelsea's players from Kingsmeadow...

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Goalkeeper & Defence
Hannah Hampton (7/10):
A solid performance, especially considering you could not always say the same about the defence in front of her.
Ellie Carpenter (6/10):
Had a fair bit of defensive work to do at the start of the game and couldn't really get going in attack as a result. Grew into this one, though, sticking to her task well.
Naomi Girma (6/10):
Had some iffy moments at the start of the game but got better as it went on, looked more assured and composed in her defending over time.
Veerle Buurman (7/10):
Adapted well to a mid-game change of position and helped open up space for others when she got forward.
Sandy Baltimore (5/10):
Got forward plenty but was relatively ineffective in attack and a little out of sorts at times in defence before being subbed off at the break.

Midfield
Keira Walsh (6/10):
Sloppy in possession to start and struggled at times with the Liverpool press but, like others, she adjusted and improved.
Erin Cuthbert (6/10):
One of few players who provided real quality in possession at times, though was often found wanting in her duels.
Sjoeke Nusken (7/10):
Has struggled for game time this season but has always responded well to that challenge when given the chance, as she did again here. Took her goal brilliantly.
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Attack
Johanna Rytting Kaneryd (5/10):
Covered plenty of ground and got into good positions but couldn't provide quality with her final ball.
Lauren James (8/10):
Was given a free role and used that to her advantage to find the space to provide the two real moments of quality in the game, to give her team the win.
Alyssa Thompson (5/10):
Worked hard and got stuck in plenty, but struggled to be effective in attack on this occasion.

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Subs & Manager
Lucy Bronze (7/10):
Enjoyed a solid 45 minutes on her return from injury, especially given it came at the unnatural position of centre-back. Helped Chelsea look much more solid in defence.
Sam Kerr (6/10):
Got into good positions and provided an important focal point in attack, but was wasteful with a huge chance.
Lexi Potter (N/A):
Enjoyed a good 15-minute outing here as her role within this Chelsea squad continues to grow.
Wieke Kaptein (N/A):
On for the final few minutes as Chelsea saw the win out.
Aggie Beever-Jones (N/A):
Another late sub.
Sonia Bompastor (7/10):
Questions could be asked of how she set this team up, especially in attack. But she responded well with a half time sub that shored up the defence and James took advantage of her free role to deliver match-winning moments.

Goalkeeper & Defence

Midfield

Attack

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Subs & Manager