Sonia Bompastor insists the gap between Chelsea & Barcelona 'isn't that big' despite Blues' humbling 8-2 Champions League semi-final exit

Chelsea signed former Women's Champions League-winning manager Bompastor last summer following Emma Hayes' departure as the domestically dominant Blues wanted their form to translate into European glory. While the London-based side is set to win the Women's Super League and is in the FA Women's Cup final, they have once again flopped as they were humbled 4-1 by Barcelona in both of their Women's Champions League semi-final clashes, accruing a horrifying 8-2 loss on aggregate

Chelsea had made a number of comments regarding their physicality being a trump card against Barcelona this time out; however, the defending UWCL champions were ruthless through both games and knocked Chelsea out, for the third season running, in the semi-final of the competition. Bompastor has now claimed that the gap between the two teams wasn't as big despite the humbling result, indicating that Barcelona's 'effectiveness' was the reason for their win.

Speaking to the media, Bompastor said: "Barcelona is a really good team, but the difference between the teams isn't that big. One team was effective in both matches, but mine wasn't.

"It didn't happen this year, but now we must reflect on how we make it happen. The only positive thing is that I'm very clear about what we have to do to compete for the Champions League. We don't shy away from the club's ambitions.

"These two games are two big lessons for us. If we want to move forward, we need to reflect on what we need to do to be a better team, to be ready to perform against the best team in Europe, which is Barcelona.

"But every club has that reflection. I remember when Barcelona lost the final in 2022 against Lyon, they had this big reflection on how they could move forward to be a better team. We'll have that time with the club, the ownership, the sporting directors and myself, to just make sure we improve in the right direction to be able to compete against Barcelona and other teams."

Despite Bompastor's claims, former Lionesses and Chelsea star Karen Carney has stated that the 'gulf' between Barcelona and the Blues is massive and labelled their defending as 'shocking'. Speaking to TNT Sports, Carney said: "The gulf you have seen between the two teams is absolutely huge. This team is ridiculously good, but the defending from Chelsea has been shocking.

"I'm trying to wrap my head around where Chelsea go from now. Do you keep chasing and buying players, or is it a mental or tactical thing?

"The gulf shouldn't be that big. Every individual player put in the effort they wanted to be there, but the gulf is too big, and I don't really understand why. It shouldn't be 8-2."

Bompastor has now shifted her focus towards the rest of the domestic season after their disappointment in Europe with the WSL title win close and the FA Women's Cup approaching. She said: "It's maybe not the right timing for us to talk about that because we still have two competitions to go and really important games to come. The one on Wednesday will be crucial again for the league. But as a club and as a manager, I want to make sure we reflect."