Chelsea return to Kingsmeadow for the first time this season as they host Leicester City in a lunchtime clash on Sunday. The Blues have made a perfect start under manager Sonia Bompastor with back-to-back victories, including a 3-1 win at Aston Villa last weekend where Sam Kerr made her long-awaited return with a goal. Leicester, meanwhile, secured their first win of the season by defeating Liverpool 1-0 at home and will be looking to build on that momentum under interim boss Rick Passmoor.
Date /
Time: Sunday, September 21, 2025, 12:00 GMT; 7:00am EST Venue: Kingsmeadow, Kingston upon Thames, UK Referee: Mel Burgin Forecast: Light cloud and light winds
On TV: Sky Sports (UK); none (USA); elsewhere
Streaming: Sky Go (UK); ESPN+ (USA)
Chelsea team news: Bompastor has confirmed that Lucy Bronze, Lauren James and Naomi Girma will all miss Sunday’s match. There is also a doubt over Niamh Charles’ fitness after she was substituted at half-time against Aston Villa with an ankle problem, though the boss indicated the injury was not serious.
Erin Cuthbert is available after recovering from a knock, while Sam Kerr is ready for selection following her successful return to action last weekend. The Australian striker ended her 20-month injury absence with a goal against Villa and Bompastor confirmed she’s in a good place both mentally and physically.
Summer signing Alyssa Thompson made her debut off the bench against Villa and has settled well into the squad. The Blues head coach praised the depth of attacking options available to her, noting the importance of rotation given Chelsea’s intense schedule across four competitions.
“With the quality of the players we have, we are one of the teams with the best quality upfront, for sure. I think that’s really important because we are playing so many games.
“The schedule is intense, and we want to compete in all four competitions. It’s important to have depth in every position, but also to have healthy competition between the players.
“We want to go into every game and be a competitive team. When you look at some of the teams in Europe, they also invested a lot of money in some players, so I would say we are probably one of the best in Europe, but not the only one.
“We will have some good competition, and it will be nice to see that.”
-Sonia Bompastor; Source: Chelsea FC
Leicester City team news: Leicester had a mixed summer transfer window, bringing in veteran American midfielder Celeste Boureille from Montpellier, young Irish goalkeeper Katie Keane from Shamrock Rovers, and most recently Australia international Emily van Egmond from Birmingham City. However, these additions don’t seem to fully compensate key departures including long-serving defender Sophie Howard, and forward Deanne Rose.
On top of that the Foxes are still adjusting to life under interim manager Rick Passmoor, who took over just 10 days before the season started following the surprise sacking of Amandine Miquel. Despite a 4-0 opening day defeat to Manchester United, Leicester bounced back with a crucial 1-0 victory over Liverpool last time out.
Passmoor has been working to create a positive environment while the club searches for a permanent manager. The forward trio of Missy Goodwin, Denny Draper and Noémie Mouchon remain unavailable through injury, though Jutta Rantala is expected to be in the squad despite not taking part in full training.
Previously: Three different goalscorers in a 3-1 win where Chelsea largely dominated the Foxes at Kingsmeadow.
