Ellie Carpenter may not have been at Chelsea long but she soon learned the ‘high standards’ expected of her in training. That pre-season graft paid off on Friday night as she played a starring role in our victory over Manchester City.
Carpenter provided the assist for [Aggie Beever-Jones](/en/teams/profile/aggie-beever-jones)’s opening goal at Stamford Bridge, darting down the right flank and firing in a cross that was begging to be converted. Beever-Jones duly obliged.
That was not the Australian’s only telling contribution during a fine debut that earned her the Player of the Match prize. Carpenter ranked highest in Chelsea blue for chances created, completed passes in the final third, crosses and tackles won. Only [Nathalie Bjorn](/en/teams/profile/nathalie-bjorn) had more touches than her 77, as she attacked with purpose and pace down our right-hand side.
She explained after the hard-fought victory how work done at Cobham since signing has paid off.
‘Pre-season was hard, it was actually my first full pre-season I’ve ever done, but being new to the squad it was really nice to create those relationships early with the team,’ said Carpenter.
‘We really worked on our foundations and we are really gelling as a team. I’m just really happy with the win.
She added: ‘Everyone wants to beat Chelsea. Coming in here and being new, you can see that winning mentality from day one. That’s what so lovely about this environment. Everyone can give their all.
‘Even in training you want to win everything, and then we transfer that onto the pitch for the game. It’s important to have those high standards every day.’