Scorers: Rytting Kaneryd 36′

Chelsea’s defence of their WSL title got off to a nervy start as they edged past Aston Villa 1-0 on the opening night of the season.

In Sonia Bompastor’s first Super League game in the dugout, the Blues took the lead just after the half hour mark as Johanna Rytting Kaneryd curled in from 25 yards after some neat footwork to get away from her marker.

They could have made it two only for Mille Bright to see an effort cleared, and they headed into the break a goal to the good.

However, the second half saw a much improved Villa performance, with Rachel Daly seeing an effort come back off the crossbar, while the Blues could not find a second goal to kill the game off.

As the game headed into the final stages, Aston Villa threw bodies forward trying to find a way past the Blues backline, and Daly forced an excellent save from Hampton deep into stoppage time before Villa goalkeeper D’Angelo also tested Hampton with a header, having come up for a set piece.

But Bright and co. stood strong to ensure that they came away from Kingsmeadow with a win, albeit a nervy one, in their opening game.