Baltimore on the spot but Chelsea make stuttering start

The Champions League is Chelsea’s white whale.

- Suzanne Wrack

They want it. They want it badly. However, their title credentials took a knock in the Netherlands, a 1-1 draw against Twente far from the ideal start.

Despite Chelsea's dominance in possession it was the home team that took the lead through Danique van Ginkel before Sandy Baltimore converted from the spot for the equaliser.

"It’s not a good result at all," said Sonia Bompastor. "We wanted to start the campaign with three points and a victory. Tonight, out of possession I am quite happy with the performance, even if we conceded a goal. In possession, when you play this game you need to show more desire especially when you are in the box."

Every piece of silverware is valuable but, for the team that has won it all domestically, the desire for the final piece of the puzzle is strong. It eluded them during Emma Hayes's tenure, defeat to Barcelona in the 2021 final the closest they came. Three back-to-back semifinal defeats to Barcelona, including losing 8-2 on aggregate last season, have stung.