Brighton & Hove Albion manager Hope Powell says that her side are well-aware of the mammoth task that awaits them at Kingsmeadow this lunchtime.
The Seagulls return to the scene of last season’s biggest Barclays FA Women’s Super League upset with Albion having defeated Chelsea 2-1 on their own turf back in February, ending the hosts’ 33-match unbeaten league run in the process.
Speaking in the pre-match press conference in which FAWSL Full-Time were present, Powell said that her side are well-aware of the latest challenge provided by Chelsea and that The Blues will be out for revenge.
“We know that it is going to be a really difficult task,” Powell said. “All we are going to try to do is perform to a level that we expect of ourselves.
“We recognise the qualities and the capabilities that Chelsea have and we know based on last year that they are going to want to right that wrong, that’s for sure. We are expecting a tough encounter.
“I think it is just about focusing on our performance, irrespective of the result. Of course, we want to win the game, we want to win every game but the reality is that we have got to look at our performance. We are trying to set standards around performance and quite often, it you perform well, you give yourself the best chance.”
Powell went on to say that Albion’s game plan is simple. Her side must defend resolutely, try to deny the opposition space and ultimately, be patient when out of possession.
She added “We recognise that they are going to have more possession than we are, that happened last time, that happened every game that we have played against them so we expect it to be the same.
“For us, it is about how we deny them space and opportunities in-front of goal and when we do get the ball, it is about what we do with it. If we have the ball, they can’t shoot but it they have the ball, we’ve got to be very resilient, very organised and make it very difficult for them to break us down. That’s what we will aim to do.”
The Barclays FA Women’s Super League fixture between Chelsea and Brighton & Hove Albion kicks-off at 11.30am and will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League.