Chelsea head coach Sonia Bompastor was delighted with her side's 3-0 home victory over Celtic in the Women's Champions League on Wednesday, which extended her 100% start and secured their place in the quarter-final.

Bompastor's side remain three points above Real Madrid at the top of Group B and can now no longer be caught by third-placed Twente.

"I told the players before the game tonight that it was an opportunity for us to qualify for the quarter-final, and we did that," she told the official club website after the game.

The result comes after a 2-0 victory over Manchester City in the WSL last weekend, which also has them top of that table with seven wins from seven.

"We also remain top of the table, which is also something we want to make sure we achieve. It's great news that we were able to rotate the squad and give opportunities to some players to play a Champions League game again.

"We could rest some players thinking about the Manchester United game [on Sunday]."

One of those players who got on the pitch as a result of that rotation was 17-year-old Lola Brown, who made her professional debut after coming off the bench in the 85th minute.

"It's a special week for her individually, but also for the club," Bompastor said. "I'm really pleased for her and the opportunity for her to come in, especially in a Champions League game.

"She's been training with us and I can see her talent, even if she is young. She's really dynamic as a player, really smart, and really good with the ball. She will progress and this experience tonight will bring her a lot of joy and a lot of confidence.

'As a manager, I worked a lot with the young players, especially when I was at the academy with Lyon, and it's also something special for me when I can give an opportunity to a young player to come in and show themselves. It's really good and shows the good job that the club is doing with young players.'

Aside from Brown, Bompastor made six changes to Chelsea's starting XI for the game and was pleased with the contribution of the players who came in.

"It's been my mindset from the beginning of the season. We play so many games and have to make sure everyone is involved. It's also the opportunity for me to show my trust in the players and the squad.

"It's important because it's not possible for a player to play 90 minutes every three days, especially with a lot of international players who play for their national team and club and travel all around the world. I think that's the way it has to be.'

Chelsea reached the Women's Champions League quarter-finals with two games to spare and stayed perfect under Sonia Bompastor with a 3-0 win over Celtic.

Real Madrid's 3-2 victory over Twente earlier on Wednesday meant Chelsea only needed to draw at Stamford Bridge to ensure progression from Group B.

However, goals from Lucy Bronze, Wieke Kaptein and Eve Perisset helped the Blues to their 11th victory in as many matches under former Lyon boss Bompastor.

Just 65 seconds had passed when Bronze hammered a volley home from Catarina Macario's corner, as Chelsea looked to enjoy a more comfortable outing after being forced to come from behind to win 2-1 at Celtic Park last week.

Another corner led to Chelsea's second goal in the 25th minute as Guro Reiten swung a wonderful ball in for Kaptein to glance home.

The Blues dominated the rest of the way and racked up 25 shots to Celtic's three, and they added a third deep into stoppage time when substitute Perisset converted from 12 yards following Shannon McGregor's handball.

Bompastor's former club Lyon also clinched their spot in the knockout stages as four late goals saw them beat Roma 4-1 and seal qualification from Group A.

They trailed as late as the 77th minute through a goal from Roma substitute Giulia Dragoni, but two goals in less than two minutes Kadidiatou Diani turned the game on its head.

Substitute Eugenie Le Sommer added a third before Wendie Renard managed a fourth in stoppage time, with Lyon's superior head-to-head record ensuring they can no longer be overtaken by the Giallorosse. 

Sonia Bompastor was not happy with Chelsea's performance in their 2-1 away victory against Celtic in the Champions League on Wednesday, despite it extending her 100% record since joining the club.

The visitors had to fight back from a goal down after conceding a Murphy Agnew opener on 22 minutes but had turned things around 10 minutes later. Aggie Beever-Jones, meanwhile, was sent off in second-half stoppage time for two bookable offences.

While Bompastor was not impressed by her own side, she was quick to give credit to their opposition.

"I knew it would be a tough game for us, especially because of the Celtic mentality. They showed a lot of heart, and they played with a lot of energy. We were expecting that they were going to be really motivated," she said.

Chelsea came into this game without Millie Bright, Mayra Ramirez, Sjoeke Nusken and Kadeisha Buchanan, with Bompastor deciding to leave them out of the squad. It was a decision that resulted in some rustiness among the starters, according to the manager.

"I decided to rotate my squad, so sometimes it can happen that the players don't get the same chemistry together. But I wanted to have a better impression from my team. I'm really happy with the three points and the victory, but not really happy with the performance. We were not efficient enough tonight," she said.

"Every game is always an opportunity to learn. Tonight I learned a lot and I will share that with my players as a team, but also as individuals."

Following their Champions League victory, Chelsea face WSL leaders Manchester City at the weekend, with their opposition having dropped just two points in their opening seven league games.

Having given some fringe players a run out in Scotland, Bompastor was pleased at the prospect of a fresher squad going into such a big game.

"There are some positives. With our squad, we are still able to rotate players and rest some. We have the three points and the victory, so we stay in the good dynamic for that, but in terms of the performance, we needed to do a better job in different aspects," she added.

"As a manager, I always have different plans for the game and the three substitutions were planned. That's the positive. We are just now moving on and going into the Manchester City game exactly with the plans we wanted to have."

Chelsea rallied from a goal down to see off a spirited Celtic team 2-1 in the Women's Champions League, maintaining their perfect start to life under Sonia Bompastor.

Bompastor had led the Blues to six straight wins in the Women's Super League and masterminded triumphs over Real Madrid and Twente in Europe.

However, her perfect record came under serious threat in Glasgow, where competition debutants Celtic led through Murphy Agnew 's 22nd-minute goal.

She capped a lightning counter by racing in behind before slotting into the bottom-left corner, scoring Celtic's first goal in the Women's Champions League.

However, their lead lasted just six minutes as Maika Hamano swept home Aggie Beever-Jones' cutback for the equaliser, then Ashley Lawrence powered home a rebound in the 32nd minute to complete a rapid turnaround.

Beever-Jones was dismissed after collecting her second yellow card in stoppage time, but it did not matter to Chelsea as they made it 12 straight wins in all competitions.

They are now three points clear of Real Madrid at the top of Group B, after the Spanish giants routed Twente 7-0 earlier on Wednesday.

In Group A, Bompastor's former club Lyon posted an impressive 3-0 win at Roma to move three points clear of the Giallorosse.

Melchie Dumornay scored twice before half-time to put the French champions in the ascendency, then Vanessa Gilles reacted quickest to a right-wing corner to prod home their third seven minutes into the second half.

With three wins from as many matches, Lyon are three points clear of Roma and six ahead of Wolfsburg, who managed a 5-0 win over Galatasaray on Wednesday.

Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor has said that they will be without four key players ahead of their Champions League game away to Celtic on Wednesday.

Bompastor confirmed that Millie Bright, Mayra Ramirez, Sjoeke Nusken and Kadeisha Buchanan have not travelled to Scotland for their encounter at Celtic Park.

The Blues know a victory will seal their progression to the knockout stages, though have decided to rest a few of their key players during a hectic fixture schedule. 

Their trip to Scotland will be the second of three matches inside seven days in all competitions for Bompastor's side and, as a result, she has decided to rotate her squad.

"The squad is in a good place and we have a good dynamic and we are full of confidence," she told a press conference

"We have been playing a lot of games and this week we play three games so it’s important to manage players as individuals.

“We have some players who didn’t travel for this game. Kadeisha Buchanan, Millie Bright, Sjoeke Nusken and Mayra Ramirez didn’t travel."

Chelsea come into the game with a 100% record in all competitions under Bompastor, including two wins from two against Real Madrid and Twente in the Champions League.

And they will be confident of maintaining their perfect run, having lost just one of their previous 20 group stage matches in the competition (W14 D5) and are unbeaten across their last 14 (W11 D3). 

“As you know, Chelsea have a good squad with quality and a good team will start the game and be competitive because we want to finish first in this group," she said.

Their early-season form has them second in the Women's Super League and top of their Champions League group, at least three points ahead of any other team.

Despite resting players, Bompastor reassured people that it was Chelsea's ambition to fight on all fronts.

“The Champions League is important and we have ambition and we want to make sure we finish first in the group," she said.

“We have ambitions and if we want to go for all the competitions then you need to beat every team.

“It will start again in March and that’s when the really important games start, but right now we are focused on the group stage.”

Chelsea kicked off their 2024-25 Women's Champions League campaign with a 3-2 victory at home to Real Madrid in Group B.

The victory puts the Blues in second in their group after one match, while it was a perfect start for manager Sonia Bompastor, who was taking charge of her first Champions League game for the club.

Bompastor led Lyon to the Champions League final in two of the last three seasons, winning it in 2021-22. She will be hoping to do the same in west London this season and things got off to the perfect start for her and Chelsea in this game.

Sjoeke Nusken's second-minute goal put the home side ahead - unsurprisingly, that is the quickest goal in the Champions League this season.

In miserable weather at Stamford Bridge, things got even better for the hosts after they were awarded a penalty for a foul on Nusken. Guro Reiten made it 2-0 from the spot in the 28th minute, with Madrid goalkeeper Misa Rodriguez unable to get a hand to it despite diving the right way.

But Madrid were back in it 11 minutes later, with Alba Redondo finishing tidily through Zecira Musovic's legs - her second Champions League goal in as many matches.

They were unable to make the most of that lifeline, with Chelsea restoring their two-goal advantage soon after the break. Mayra Ramirez scored her first goal of the season, heading in Lauren James' cross seven minutes after the restart.

The drama was not finished though. Substitute Linda Caicedo once again cut the deficit for the visitors, making it a nervy final seven minutes for Chelsea, but the home side held on to claim a valuable three points.

Chelsea have now lost just one of their last 19 group stage matches (W13 D5) and are unbeaten across their last 13 (W10 D3); the only other team to have participated in every group stage since they were introduced in 2021 and lost just once is Barcelona (W16 D1).

Elsewhere in Group B, Celtic were beaten 2-0 by FC Twente in their opener, which marked their first-ever game in the Champions League.

Kayleigh van Dooren netted twice for the Dutch side, although the Scottish champions held out until the 44th minute before conceding.

In truth, they were second-best with the visitors dominating possession, having over 70% of the ball, and taking double the shots on target of their hosts (six to three). Twente got a second five minutes from time and go top of the group.

Arsenal booked their place in the Champions League group stage after overcoming a first-leg deficit to beat Hacken 4-0 at Meadow Park.

The first leg in Sweden threw up a shock 1-0 defeat, but Jonas Eidevall's side were up to the task, with Lia Walti and new signing Mariona Caldentey turning the scoreline on its head in the first half.

A brilliant strike from Beth Mead then ensured their progress, before substitute Frida Maanum added some more gloss to the scoreline late on.

The Gunners produced a much better performance in front of goal than in the reverse fixture. Arsenal may have had fewer shots on Thursday (14) and failed to convert any of their four big chances, but the emphatic scoreline is what matters most.

They join fellow Women's Super League side Manchester City in the draw, with Gareth Taylor's side cruising past Paris FC.

Their job was all but done after a crushing 5-0 win in the first leg, but Khadija Shaw's double, following Chloe Kelly's early opener, secured them an 8-0 aggregate win.

With another clean sheet under their belt in the competition, City have reached the group stage for the first time since 2020-21, when they fell to Barcelona in the quarter-finals.

There was more despair in the French capital as Paris Saint-Germain, last season's semi-finalists, suffered a shock defeat to Juventus.

PSG have reached at least the quarter-finalists in each of the last five seasons and were mainstays in the competition, but after suffering a 3-1 loss in Turin, their hopes of a comeback were soon squashed.

Sofia Cantore scored just two minutes in to set Juve on course for a 2-1 victory in the game, and a 5-2 aggregate scoreline, getting their name in the hat for the first time in two years.

Elsewhere, Real Madrid secured their place in the competition, as did Celtic, who will play in the Champions League group stage for the first time since it was introduced in 2020-21 after a 3-0 aggregate win over Vorskla Poltava.

And a special mention for Roma, who emphatically brushed aside Servette 7-2 in the second leg to secure a 10-3 aggregate victory.

Arsenal, Manchester City and Celtic found out their opponents for the Women's Champions League qualifying second round on Monday. 

All three will play the first leg away from home, with Jonas Eidevall's side, who beat Rangers and Rosenborg to reach this stage of the tournament, facing BK Hacken. 

The Swedish side reached the quarter-finals last year for the first time in the competition since the 2012-13 edition.

BK Hacken also played Arsenal in the last eight of the tournament during the 2011-12 season, with the Gunners winning 3-2 on aggregate. 

Man City kickstart their Champions League campaign after finishing second in the Women's Super League last term against Paris FC.

The French side beat Real Madrid home and away last year but finished third in a group that contained Chelsea and BK Hacken. 

Celtic were the only British team to be involved in the Champions Path draw and will face Ukrainian champions Vorskla Poltava.

The first legs of the two-legged ties will take place on September 18 and 19, with the returns on September 25 and 26.

Those that emerge victorious in the round-two qualifying fixtures will progress to the group stages of the competition, joining Barcelona, Lyon, Bayern Munich and Chelsea.