Sonia Bompastor has set an uncompromising target for Chelsea Women ahead of their first competitive game of the season, insisting the ambition remains to win everything.
Chelsea return to competitive action against Real Sociedad on Wednesday 26 August in the first leg of their Women’s Champions League third qualifying-round tie.
A place in the league phase is on the line, alongside a guaranteed starting payment worth €505,000 if Chelsea progress.
For Bompastor, however, the target goes considerably beyond simply qualifying for Europe.
🗣️ Sonia: “I haven’t decided yet on my leadership group and my captains. We are making those decisions together, so it’s really important for me to get some feedback from the players. Obviously I’m the one who makes the final decision. It’s important for the players to be… pic.twitter.com/melgJxoQlT
— Chelsea Women (@CFC__Women) August 17, 2026
Sonia Bompastor sets huge Chelsea target
“Obviously the ambition at Chelsea is to win everything,” Bompastor told the club’s official website.
The Chelsea head coach also acknowledged the scale of the challenge after a period of change within her squad.
Bompastor described last season as part of a transition and said Chelsea are still refreshing the squad and rebuilding the culture within the team.
That makes the Real Sociedad tie an immediate test of how far that process has progressed.
ReadChelsea has already examined why Chelsea’s Champions League showdown with Real Sociedad carries a €505,000 reward, but qualification would also prevent the Blues suffering an unusually early European setback.
Chelsea have returned to Cobham following an encouraging pre-season tour of Australia and New Zealand.
The club’s wider emphasis on developing its next generation has also been reinforced this week, with Chelsea making a major Cobham academy change ahead of the new campaign.
Bompastor knows expectations around her senior side remain considerably higher.
Chelsea want to challenge for trophies again.
Before they can think about winning Europe, they first have to survive a two-legged qualifier.
Bompastor’s message before it could hardly be clearer.
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