Sonia Bompastor has accepted she will lose players to international duties during the WSL season, but the Chelsea coach is not content with the women’s football calendar.
The first leg of the Champions League quarter finals against Arsenal is on Wednesday (AEDT), but five Australian stars will miss the match due to travel after the Asian Cup.
Bompastor recognised that clubs have little control when it comes to player fatigue due to travel, but said that could be prevented if there was a better schedule made by FIFA.
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Australian star Ellie Carpenter voiced a similar concern during the Women’s Asian Cup, revealing that players are left to pick between club or country too often in their careers.
Carpenter urged FIFA to reconsider the schedule after she and Sam Kerr were left to watch their Chelsea teammates win the Women’s League Cup title without them.
Sam Kerr and Ellie Carpenter seen after the women’s Asian Cup final. Corbis via Getty Images
That final was not the only major club tournament that the Chelsea duo were forced to miss, having also been ruled out of FA Cup games and now a Champions League game. Arsenal trio Steph Catley, Cailtin Foord and Kyra Cooney-Cross will also be absent.
A whopping 26 players who were involved in the Asian Cup final are making the journey back to the UK to resume their club careers in the WSL this week. At least one player from every WSL team featured at some stage in the tournament.
Carpenter noted no other major women’s tournament falls during the club season, with the Women’s Euros and the Copa America Femenina both scheduled in the off-season.
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Even though Australia’s Chelsea pair have both travelled back to the UK – Kerr has yet to land in England – their coach is not willing to risk fielding them due to fatigue.
“We are in a position where it’s very difficult to decide for them to be available,” she said.
“It is a shame a little bit because they are important players for us.
Sonia Bompastor replaced Emma Hayes as head coach of Chelsea in 2024. Â WSL Football via Getty Images
“It was really good for them to play in the final … but during the season it is hard because they can’t play for both (country and club).
“We won our first trophy and I’m sure both of them would have been really happy to be around the team. It is what it is … but it is a high risk to have them (play on Tuesday).”
The decision to leave the pair out was not easy for Bompastor, given the heavy casualty ward that the French manager is currently dealing with.
Bompastor has seven players sidelined due to injury while others are playing on restricted minutes as they settle into life back on the field. On top of that, she now has two players out due to travel fatigue.
But she insists those injury numbers do not mean Chelsea are in a state of crisis, even if just eight players came out to train prior to her press conference on Tuesday.
“Aren’t we playing the World Sevens?” she laughed.
Lauren James, who has being playing limited minutes this season, was one of the eight at training. Â Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Bompastor continued: “No, we are aware that we are playing a big game … but when you have quick turnarounds, a lot of players are (moved onto) individual programs.
“Everything is under control. We will have enough players to play the game, don’t worry.
“This is not a crisis. This is what it is when you are Chelsea, sometimes in the season you have to deal with the players being available. I’m not concerned.
“My job is to focus on what we can control and focus on those who is available. I still think we have a lot of quality and strengths to use coming into the game.
“Our job as staff is to make sure we prepare the players in the best way possible so that they can come into every game as prepared as possible.”
It is expected that Kerr and Carpenter will be available – dependent on their medical – to play against Aston Villa on Sunday (AEDT).
The first leg of the Champions League will kick off at the Emirates at 7am AEDT on Wednesday.