Bompastor on first defeat as Chelsea boss after 2-0 first leg women's champions league defeat at Manchester City
19/03/2025
CGA, Manchester, UK
19/03/2025
CGA, Manchester, UK
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00OK, who would like to start us off first?
00:05Anton, thank you.
00:10Hi Sonia.
00:11Hi.
00:12How does it feel to have your first defeat as Chelsea boss?
00:16Yeah, that's tough. Difficult, obviously.
00:21Yeah, I think today you have to say that's a difficult night.
00:26Sometimes it happens in football, so now my job is to make sure
00:30that's OK for everyone to be disappointed about the performance
00:34and the result tonight.
00:36But from tomorrow, going to the next games against City,
00:39we just need to make sure we have a good analysis as a team
00:43from the performance, but also we put the right elements
00:47going into the next two games.
00:49How simple is it to say that Vivian and Miedema
00:54was the difference between the two teams tonight?
00:57Yeah, she had a great game.
00:59I think she made a big impact for them.
01:03She just scored the two goals.
01:05In some nights in football, when you play these big games,
01:10it's a fine marge between these two teams.
01:13And when you have a world-class player like Miedema
01:16who is able to help her team with scoring two goals,
01:20it can be the difference.
01:23Tonight it was for them, so hopefully on Sunday and next Thursday
01:26we'll be able to turn things around for us.
01:48What are you like in a defeat? How do you take a defeat?
01:53I mean, we've never seen you experience it here in England,
01:56but when you go home tonight, what will be the thoughts
01:59that go in your head? How do you process it?
02:02Yeah, a lot of frustration.
02:04I think for me now it's making sure we have the right analysis
02:09in the game.
02:10So it's for me, even if I have some elements in my head,
02:13it's for me really important to analyse the game,
02:16re-watch the game again, to make sure we have the right analysis
02:19with the players.
02:21But yeah, I'm always in that situation to take all the responsibility
02:25for the performance and the result.
02:27So I'm really hard on myself.
02:29But yeah, that's what people expect the manager
02:32to be able to turn things around.
02:34So yeah, that's tough.
02:37I'm an immune, so as a manager I have emotions
02:40and it's difficult tonight.
02:41But my job is also to make sure from tomorrow
02:44we have a positive mindset going into the next two games.
02:48And from tonight there is nothing else we can control.
02:51So what you can control now is in the future.
02:54So that's my job to make sure we just move forward
02:57and we stay positive and confident.
03:00We only lost one game in the season.
03:03That's a big one, an important one.
03:05It happens.
03:06But yeah, now we need to stay positive in that situation.
03:09How tough will it be to come back from 2-0 down?
03:12I know Chelsea have done this before,
03:15but they're not used to having to come back from 2-0 down.
03:19It's quite a tricky task.
03:20I will stay confident going into the next game, the second leg,
03:25because I know we have a lot of quality in the squad.
03:28Yeah, going into the next games,
03:31I think the freshness will be important.
03:34So we have a depth in the squad again.
03:37So yeah, I make sure we do everything we can do
03:41to be in the best position to attack the next two games.
03:45That's the only thing we can do to make sure.
03:48Again, we have the right analysis from the game tonight.
03:51We just put everything in place for the players
03:53to be ready on Sunday and next Thursday.
03:56You're welcome.
03:57Catherine, next please.
04:02Hi Sonia.
04:03What do you think went wrong tonight?
04:05Where was Man City better on the pitch than your players were?
04:11Yeah, it's difficult to have a really detailed answer
04:15because we are going to play them again on Sunday
04:17and next Thursday.
04:19But I think we didn't start to play from the beginning of the game.
04:23I think also we didn't play with the desire we needed to play
04:28in the first half.
04:30I think when you play a quarterfinal of the Champions League,
04:33sometimes you talk a lot about tactics and all other elements,
04:37but the desire you need to bring into these games
04:40is sometimes the most important.
04:42The energy and making sure everyone is making all the efforts
04:45for each other.
04:46So I think maybe we were a little bit sloppy in that aspect tonight.
04:50Why do you think that was?
04:51Was it complacency at all?
04:53Is it just because of the fact it's the same team again?
04:57No, sometimes it's not always easy to find the right answers.
05:02I think from the game we had on Saturday,
05:05we were coming into this game with confidence,
05:08but not too high confidence because I always make sure
05:12we have the right balance between being confident
05:14but also being humble.
05:16We were expecting a tough game tonight.
05:18I think City just showed on the game on Saturday how good they were.
05:22I know they are a really good team with a lot of talent in the squad,
05:26as you could see again tonight.
05:28So I'm expecting the two next games to be tough again,
05:31but I still think we have the quality to beat this team.
05:35Charlotte next please, and then we'll come to Kit.
05:39Hi Sonia, what was the reason for Macario coming off at half-time?
05:44I think from the defensive game plan we had,
05:49I was not really satisfied on how we were doing in the first half.
05:53She was not the only reason why,
05:55but I just felt like maybe we needed to have more energy in that position.
05:59And Walsh and James, those substitutions?
06:02Keira, it's a bit of managing because she was injured from the Brighton game,
06:07so she didn't have 90 minutes.
06:10And the second one you said?
06:12Lauren and James.
06:14I was trying as a manager when the game is not going the way you want
06:19and the result is not positive,
06:21you always try to do something different,
06:23to bring something else to the team.
06:25So this is why when you have depth in your squad,
06:28you are able to make some substitutions.
06:31And tonight I just felt like it was the right thing to do.
06:34It didn't work.
06:36I was going to say, did you twist too early?
06:38It was still 0-0 at that stage.
06:41I wouldn't say that.
06:43I think it's really important in these types of games,
06:46especially when it's tight,
06:48to also bring sometimes energy into the game.
06:51I think the players who came in are really good players with a lot of talent.
06:56Sometimes in football you want to always have answers,
06:59but I think in some games when you make some substitutions,
07:02it goes right.
07:04Sometimes it doesn't go right.
07:06That's the way it is.
07:07So tonight it didn't work,
07:09but hopefully it will work for the next games.
07:19Hi Sonia.
07:20Chelsea have never won a Champions League.
07:23You trying to change that was a big reason for you.
07:26If you come into Chelsea,
07:28how much pressure is there on next Thursday's game?
07:31I don't look at the situation with pressure.
07:36It will be difficult,
07:38and even now more difficult,
07:40because City have two goals ahead of us,
07:43but nothing is impossible.
07:45We just need to make sure going into every game
07:48and the one next Thursday we'll put all the elements.
07:51Sometimes even when you try so hard it doesn't happen,
07:55but we'll make sure going into the next game
07:57we'll put all the elements for things to turn around,
08:01and hopefully it will.
08:03If it's not the case, we'll see.
08:05But going into the game the only thing I want to be
08:08is confident because it's still possible.
08:22Sonia, is there a part of you that will be thinking
08:25that if you're going to lose one match,
08:27perhaps the best match of the season to lose
08:29is the first leg of a game,
08:30which essentially is halfway through overall?
08:33Is this the best way for the unbeaten run to end
08:36where the match technically still isn't really over?
08:40Can you repeat this one please?
08:43I probably asked that in an elongated way.
08:46I guess I'm just wondering if part of you will think
08:49that yes, okay, the unbeaten run is gone,
08:51but the match, the tie is still not really finished.
08:54If there was a place to lose the unbeaten run,
08:56was this the best possible place for it to happen
08:59when it's only halfway through?
09:02Yeah, I would say it's not a decisive game tonight.
09:08So as I said to my players at the end,
09:11we were all disappointed and frustrated about the result,
09:15but the only positive thing tonight
09:17is we have the second leg at home next week,
09:20and everything will be possible.
09:22So I think I have already been in that situation
09:28when sometimes with these two games,
09:31things don't go the way you want in the first leg,
09:34but you still have the second leg to approach the game
09:37in a different way and to be able to qualify.
09:40So this is now my main focus
09:42to make sure going into the second leg game
09:45will bring everything possible to make it happen.
09:48It's a very long time since most of these players
09:50lost a club match, I think Liverpool away
09:53late last season for most of them.
09:55I'm just wondering what you would want to see
09:57from those players in the next training session,
09:59like what characteristics would you like to see,
10:02what attributes do you want to see from them to respond?
10:05I think when you look at Chelsea,
10:09it's been the case in the past,
10:11but it's also the case this season.
10:14The players always react in the right way,
10:17so I'm positive about that.
10:19Even this season, sometimes in the games
10:21when we were losing the game,
10:24we always had the good reaction to come back.
10:28So this is also why I have some belief
10:31going into the next game and the one on the next Thursday.
10:35I just think everything is possible
10:38and I have quality enough in the squad
10:40to turn things around.
10:42You're welcome.
10:48Thanks, Tom.
10:53Hi, Sonia.
10:54Your team was just one result away
10:56from breaking the longest unbeaten streak
10:59by a WSL team across all competitions.
11:02Unfortunately, the result didn't go your way tonight,
11:04but when you look back and reflect on that run,
11:06how do you reflect on it
11:08and did you expect to start so well in England?
11:11Do you want me to be honest in my answer?
11:15I don't care.
11:16We just lost the game.
11:17That's the most important thing.
11:19My main focus is going into the next game,
11:22just making sure we turn things around and we win.
11:26Being unbeaten, obviously it's a nice thing,
11:29but it doesn't bring any trophies.
11:31We don't care about that.
11:33I already said that before.
11:36Everyone, when they play against Chelsea,
11:39has so much anger and that's normal.
11:41I think we are a top team.
11:44The most important thing for me
11:45is to make sure we win the right games
11:48and the important ones
11:49and we win as many trophies as we can.
11:54Any more for any more?
11:56No?
11:57Okay, cool.
11:59Thanks very much.