Chelsea head coach Sonia Bompastor was left frustrated by the draw against Leicester and said any team with top ambitions should not drop points like they did on Saturday.
The Blues looked a far cry from their usual selves at the King Power Stadium, falling behind inside 20 minutes after a Missy Goodwin goal against the style of play.
Wieke Kaptein scored a late equalizer to keep Chelsea's unbeaten run intact, but the 1-1 draw ended a thirteen-match winning streak. The Blues will still finish top of the WSL table, although their lead could be cut to three points by the end of Sunday's matches.
It was perhaps their most testing match of the league season so far and Bompastor expressed her disappointment after the match.
She said on the club's website: “I'm frustrated because we have talent in the team but we didn't show that in the first half. The players must realize that this is a competitive league and if you don't show up from the start, you won't get good results.
“It's even more frustrating for me because when the other team plays a really good game you have to give them credit. I give credit to Leicester because they were strong defensively. They were all together and mentally strong.”
“But I think we have more talent than that. We had to be able to beat this team today and if you have ambitions to finish at the top of the table, you can't drop points like we did in this match today.”
Although Chelsea's WSL campaign may be paused for the winter break, they will travel to Real Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday.
The Blues have already qualified for the knockout rounds at the top of their group, but Bompastor wants a response after a poor performance.
“It's good now to see how we react,” she added to Chelsea's club media. “How we analyze performance and how we move forward. We stay together no matter what.
“That's easy when you win. If you drop points or if you lose the match, it's also very important to stay together. We still have a very important match before the end of the year.
“It will be an opportunity for us to respond, get a win and go into the winter break in a better place.”
Analysis: What happened to Chelsea?
Charlotte Marsh from Sky Sports:
Until Saturday, Chelsea seemed unstoppable: thirteen wins, countless goals, top of the table in both the WSL and the Champions League.
But the trip to the King Power was a reminder that, despite the results, the WSL remains fiercely contested and no team is infallible.
Chelsea had no attacking ideas for much of the match. Yes, there was plenty of possession and shots – no less than 28 – but many of them came later. They also failed to make real use of their twenty corners and were largely ineffective from set pieces.
Five of their six shots on target came in the final 15 minutes, and they simply looked unable to break through the hugely impressive Leicester defence.
They frustrated Chelsea at every turn, blocking and processing shots with confidence, coming through to get the ball and effectively marking the dangerous players.
Half-time substitute Catarina Macario started well but was quickly targeted. Mayra Ramirez and Maika Hamao – who were taken off the field at the break – were unable to make an impact.
Each of the back four topped a defensive statistical category for every player on the pitch: Sophie Howard for clearances (13), while Ale had both an assist and the most tackles (9). Julie Thibaud won the most tackles (4) and Sari Kees made the most interceptions (4).
Chelsea also took aim at their own back, with their defense in front of Goodwin's goal. The Leicester striker should not have been open to picking her spot with the Blues down the right.
Ultimately, a team like Chelsea should be experienced and smart enough to find the solutions, but that didn't quite work out this time.
There might be an argument that some fatigue is on the way heading into the winter break, with the continued injuries for the likes of Lauren James and Sam Kerr.
Both are catalysts for Chelsea's attacking play and provide powerful outlets, and despite seven substitutions from the midweek match against Twente, there seemed to be a general sense of lethargy.
With one match to go against Real Madrid on Tuesday, Bompastor will be hoping to right some wrongs and end on a high. Chelsea are still undefeated, but the result raised questions.
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