Man City hand Bompastor's Chelsea 1st loss in UWCL quarterfinals

Vivianne Miedema's brace handed Chelsea their first defeat this season after hosts Manchester City defeated the Women's Super League (WSL) leaders 2-0 in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal.

The Blues had only dropped points in two draws in the league ahead of the first loss since manager Sonia Bompastor took charge of the side in the summer. It is also the first time since her tenure began that Chelsea have gone behind by two-goals.

Dutch striker Miedema, off the bench, calmly slotted home from close range in the 60th minute after Laia Aleixandri's header was tipped onto the bar expertly by goalkeeper Hannah Hampton. Miedema, who signed for City in the summer from WSL rivals Arsenal, was there to slot home the rebound.

She completed her brace in the 88th minute to demolish Chelsea's 28-game unbeaten streak under Bompastor with a clinical finish in the far corner, splitting the defence with ease to mark her 31st continental goal in just 35 appearances.

Chelsea won the first of four games in 13 days  against last season's WSL runners-up, beating them 2-1 at Pride Park, Derby on Sunday to lift the League Cup trophy.

City have been injury-ravaged since before the winter break, with England duo Alex Greenwood and Lauren Hemp still ruled out with knee injuries. Miedema was also ruled out for a period of time, returning to fitness following the December break.

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Khadija "Bunny" Shaw and Aoba Fujino both picked up muscle injuries in the cup final and were unavailable for the crucial first leg tie.

Both sides were lacking a clinical edge in the final third throughout the evening. While City were peppering the opposition box with chances, accumulating 15 shots in total, they were easy for Chelsea's defence to deal with, while the visitors were struggling to get bodies into the box to finish their chances.

Mayra Ramírez did manage to get the ball in the back of the net in the 70th minute, but she was adjudged to be offside in the build-up. Substitute Johanna Rytting Kaneryd also squandered another effort to level the tie after rattling the woodwork.

Lacking their usual ruthlessness, Chelsea were growing frustrated as the clock ticked down, missing another two key chances to level the score. At the other end, City were able to double their lead to seal the win.

After a turbulent season, City parted ways with manager Gareth Taylor, who had led the side since 2020 and delivered a League Cup and an FA Cup trophy during his tenure. Former manager Nick Cushing, who Taylor succeeded, was appointed interim manager after leading City to their only WSL title in 2016 before departing for MLS side New York City FC.

In only his second game in charge, having not coached in the WSL in five years, he destroyed Chelsea's 31-game unbeaten run dating back to May last season when U.S. women's national team head coach Emma Hayes was still in charge.

Both sides will continue their run of four games against each other on Sunday, facing off the league -- a decisive fixture for City's European hopes -- before the second leg of the quarter final on March 27.