How ‘force to be reckoned with’ Bompastor built on Hayes’ legacy

BBC Sport womens football news reporter

Women’s FA Cup final: Chelsea v Manchester United

Venue: Wembley Date: Sunday, 18 May Kick-off: 13:30 BST

Coverage: Live on BBC Two, 5 Sports Extra and text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app

An unbeaten domestic season and a Treble still on the cards – it hasn’t looked that hard for Sonia Bompastor to step into Emma Hayes’ formidable shoes.

The Frenchwoman inherited a Chelsea side who, with five successive Women’s Super League titles, were used to dominating domestically under former boss Hayes.

Bompastor had one job when she arrived in August 2024 – to continue winning, and she has not disappointed in her debut campaign.

Aside from a crushing Champions League semi-final defeat by Barcelona, it has been a near-perfect season from the Blues, who wrapped up another WSL title and finished the league campaign without defeat.

With the Women’s League Cup already in the bag, they are eyeing a domestic Treble when they take on Manchester United in Sunday’s FA Cup final.

“Of course, it’s never easy to follow someone like Emma who has left a tremendous legacy,” Chelsea striker Catarina Macario told BBC Sport.

“From a personal point of view, Emma is a character, but Sonia is also a force to be reckoned with in her own way.

“She’s done really well in her first season, so if this is how she is in her first season, I can’t wait to see what it’s going to be like next year.”

Bompastor’s predecessor Hayes won 14 major trophies before joining the US women’s national team.

She had positioned the club at the pinnacle of English women’s football with Chelsea not only employing some of the country’s best talent, but also developing a reputation for being ‘mentality monsters’.

Her side had grown experience and leadership, while the club had built a strong staff structure around the women’s team.

Those elements no doubt meant the transition for Bompastor, 44, who arrived from French giants Lyon, was a lot smoother.

There were still challenges.

From a personal point of view, Bompastor has four children who she had to ensure experienced seamless moves to new schools and a new country, all with a language barrier.

She was under pressure to replicate Hayes’ success and had to make a strong impression on supporters and players who had been used to her predecessor’s management.

From the first media conference, Bompastor set out her ambitions to win the Champions League – which ultimately did not come to fruition this season – and to build on the strong foundations already set by Hayes.

“[Hayes] gave her life to the club. The base is really good, and she left the club in such a great position,” said Bompastor in August.

“But I was not expecting anything else from her. She’s such a great manager and person – so it is good for me to come after her.

“I have a different vision and philosophy. I’m just trying to build on that legacy and find a way to manage the players and staff.

“What is really important is to come to this club, respect everything that was built before and build my own vision. I hope we will be successful.”

Bompastor did what she said by adding new signings Sandy Baltimore, Lucy Bronze and Keira Walsh to an already-impressive squad.

She made goalkeeper Hannah Hampton her regular number one, successfully integrated young midfielder Wieke Kaptein and played a role in persuading United States defender Naomi Girma to join for a world-record fee in January.

As well as setting a club-record WSL points tally of 60 this season, Bompastor could guide Chelsea to their most successful trophy haul since they won the Treble in 2020-21.

Bompastor, who won the Champions League as a player and manager with Lyon, describes herself as a “simple person” – she does not drink alcohol, does not celebrate much and she enjoys spending time with family.

But she is a perfectionist who loves to win.

After beating Crystal Palace 4-0 in the WSL, Bompastor criticised her players for not being “ruthless” enough, while she said before the final league game of the season that she was “striving for perfection” in the hope of finishing the campaign unbeaten.

She was not only keen to deliver on the pitch, but off it, and regularly watches other WSL managers’ press conferences to improve her English so she can communicate better with the media.

In training, she emphasises the importance of accuracy, constantly pushing her players to be confident on the ball and to take ownership of possession.

“She expects us all to just give our all in everything, if we’re doing passing patterns in training or just being ruthless about certain things,” added Macario.

“She wants us to be ruthless in every single way, even if it’s just a small game between ourselves. She strives for perfection in everything.

“Unfortunately, perfection cannot be achieved every time!”

Macario jokes that Bompastor can be “a terrible loser” and there have been moments where her composed demeanour has cracked.

In April, when Chelsea were drawing 0-0 with Manchester United and under pressure, Bompastor kicked a bottle of water into the hoardings to unleash her frustration before Bronze’s winner eventually confirmed them as champions.

The Champions League exit is clearly still on her mind, referencing it when asked about the success they have achieved this season.

It remains the glaring omission from Chelsea’s trophy cabinet and the one Bompastor was hired to try to win.

Macario says the manager’s mentality keeps her team-mates sharp and they can “never take their foot off the gas”.

“It’s very fair to share frustrations. We did not play or impose ourselves the way we wanted to against Barcelona,” said Macario.

“Of course, she’s very right to be frustrated, upset and expect more from us. And so do we.

“It’s just knowing we have to work even harder to meet that criteria and meet those expectations.

“We can never be satisfied with just winning a specific game or the domestic league.”

Macario says one word to describe Chelsea is: “successful”.

That is something that has been built over several years in England but Bompastor’s vision is to lead Chelsea to European glory.

There were glimpses of how she wants to do it in the way they played this year with more possession-based football and utilising attacking wing-backs effectively.

Their style is less direct than it was under Hayes and though Bompastor believes there is a lot of work to do, Macario says the team are learning to adapt.

“Sonia puts a heavy emphasis on pride in keeping the ball and for us to be technical,” said Macario.

“She wants us to be accurate in our passing – whether that’s to the right foot or with the right weight. It’s something we hear constantly, every single day!

“We are definitely trying to get better at it. When we do have pressure, we know we can get out of it by doing certain things. It will take some adapting to.”

But early signs are promising.

Liverpool interim manager Amber Whiteley said Bompastor had taken Chelsea to “another level” before they faced each other in the final game of the season.

And Manchester United boss Marc Skinner said the Frenchwoman had “added her own subtleties and details” to the “team of winners” she inherited from Hayes.

For Bompastor, the future ambitions are clear – to do all it takes to win the Champions League.

Related topics