Chelsea Women v Arsenal Women

Sunday 5th March 2023

Kick off 3pm 

Continental Tyres League Cup Final

Selhurst Park

It’s a London Derby in the League Cup final as Chelsea Women meet Arsenal in the south of the capital on Sunday afternoon, with Jonas Eidevall on the hunt for his first taste of silverware as Arsenal manager.

Arsenal may have lost to Chelsea for the third season running in the FA Cup on Sunday afternoon, but the two sides will now take their rivalry to Crystal Palace’s Selhurst Park, a ground that is widely regarded to have one of the best atmospheres in the Premier League. Tickets for the final have sold out, with Arsenal set to turn the Holmesdale Road Stand into a sea of red and white.

With a Champions League quarter final tie against Bayern Munich to come, Arsenal will have opportunities to enjoy some cup success in what is setting up to be another season where the WSL trophy passes the Gunners by. 

Arsenal are now fourth in the table and three points behind Manchester City, who occupy the final spot for European qualification. Manchester United now sit top, with Chelsea a point behind with a game in hand- Arsenal’s defeat to City before the international break left them six points adrift of top spot.

Since Arsenal won the WSL in 2018/19, Chelsea have picked up three league titles, two FA Cups and two more League Cup victories. Two of those domestic cup finals had Arsenal on the receiving end, so the size of Arsenal’s task on Sunday perhaps would still be almost as large if the Gunners were flying in the league, as the mental side of taking on Chelsea in these big occasions will be something that Jonas Eidevall will have to deal with.

Despite the loss in the FA Cup just a few days ago, Arsenal should take positives away from their 2-0 defeat to the Blues. In keeping with a common theme since the season-ending injuries to Mead and Miedema, Arsenal were able to create many clear cut chances but simply could not find a way past Ann-Katrin Berger, with a combination of some wayward efforts from the likes of Stina Blackstenius and simply a lack of confidence in front of goal.

Similarly to the 1-1 draw with Chelsea at the Emirates, Arsenal dominated possession and mustered twenty shots to Chelsea’s seven at Kingsmeadow, but Sam Kerr just needed one opportunity to seal the cup tie with a second half goal after Sophie Ingle found a way past Zinsberger midway through the first half.

With top talent Lauren James finding form in the recent Arnold Clark Cup for the Lionesses, this is a game where the battles could be won in wide areas. Caitlin Foord dominated the Chelsea full-backs from start to finish, whether it was terrorising Niamh Charles down Arsenal’s right or cutting inside and driving at Eve Pérriset on the opposite flank. After scoring twice for Australia in the international break, Foord will be a crucial part of Arsenal’s plans to conquer the Blues at Selhurst Park.

Arsenal will take confidence from their semi final win over Manchester City, where Stina Blackstenius’ goal in extra time sent the Gunners through to the second final in Jonas Eidevall’s tenure. The Gunners’ dismal league defeat to the same opposition three days later though arguably showed that progress had not been made, with Eidevall scrapping the short lived back three after the international break.

With Chelsea unbeaten in domestic football since their opening day defeat to Liverpool, the Blues will take some stopping if Arsenal are to win their first silverware in four years. Winning the Conti Cup after defeat to Manchester City in last year’s final will only help to push Emma Hayes’ side on to challenge for yet another WSL title. Arsenal have to put recent slip ups behind them, with a season-defining month coming up that includes a European quarter final, North London derby amongst a packed fixture schedule.

The 2023 Conti Cup final gets underway at Selhurst Park at 3pm on Sunday, and will be shown live on BBC One in the UK.