New Blues head coach Sonia Bompastor will step into the dugout at Kingsmeadow for the first time when we host the Vrouwen Eredivisie side on Saturday 7 September.

Upon our return from our USA tour, where we will have played two pre-season matches against NJ/NY Gotham and Arsenal, the encounter with Feyenoord will be a first opportunity for fans to see Bompastor and her team in action on home soil ahead of the Women’s Super League starting a fortnight later.

Let’s look back at our last three pre-season outings at Kingsmeadow where we took on Roma, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa…

Roma

The preparation for what ended as our fifth consecutive WSL title-winning campaign began with the Blues taking on then-reigning Serie A champions Roma.

There were debut minutes for summer signings Mia Fishel, Ashley Lawrence and Sjoeke Nusken while there was plenty of game time shared around the rest of the returning squad.

With four goals in the first half alone, it proved an entertaining encounter on a warm summer’s evening in Kingston. Emilie Haavi gave Roma the lead after only seven minutes, but Chelsea responded with Guro Reiten pulling us level, finding the bottom corner in the 20th minute.

The game was not level for long as 10 minutes later the Italian outfit went ahead again, this time through Valentina Giacanti.

And the final goal of the first half came from Lauren James in what was a sign of what was to come, with our number 10 going on to finish as our top goal scorer for the 2023/24 season.

Against Roma, James scored the pick of the goals. A dipping strike from 25 yards out came off the underside of the bar and over the line to make it 2-2 in the 37th minute.

The friendly saw VAR be trialed for the first time at a women’s stadium in England – and after Chelsea were awarded a penalty in the second half, the technology intervened as replays showed the handball offence took place outside the box.

There was less goalmouth action in the second half, but Aggie Beever-Jones stepped up in injury time to score our third and secure the win. It was another sign of what was to come during the upcoming campaign.

The forward, who would go on to enjoy a breakthrough season scoring 11 times in the WSL and winning her first senior England cap, was picked out by Jessie Fleming and slotted the ball home from six yards out.

Tottenham Hotspur

Almost 2,500 fans watched the Blues take on Spurs in an all-WSL pre-season clash at Kingsmeadow ahead of the 2022/23 campaign.

This would be our third and final match ahead of the season's start, with our first league game held at Stamford Bridge when we hosted West Ham.

In a similar fashion to this pre-season’s match against Feyenoord, we hosted Spurs after returning from the women’s first-ever tour in the USA which saw the Blues take on Lyon and Portland Thorns in a mini-tournament in Oregon.

Against Tottenham, a strong Chelsea line-up were 2-0 to the good at half-time thanks to goals from Pernille Harder and James.

Harder struck a scrambled opener inside the first 15 minutes, before James hit a measured finish just before the break – which was her second goal of pre-season, having scored in our 2-2 draw with Lyon, who were then managed by Bompastor, in the States.

Those first-half goals proved to be the only two of the game, but the Blues looked increasingly sharp as the contest went on.

Aston Villa

Our final pre-season friendly of the 2021/22 season was a special occasion as our fans returned to Kingsmeadow for the first time since December 2020.

Ahead of Chelsea Women’s 30th competitive campaign, we welcomed Villa to our home, having already played two public pre-season matches against London rivals Arsenal and Scottish Women’s Premier League side Rangers.

With a loss and a win from those games respectively, we signed off on a positive note against Villa with a 1-0 victory against Villa.

The only goal of the game came in the 23rd minute when Beth England connected with a Reiten cross, stooping low to guide it over the Villa goalkeeper and into the back of the net.

There were chances to extend our advantage through Harder and Erin Cuthbert, who went closest but her effort went inches wide of the post.

Although it was not goals galore, it was a valuable match which saw many in the squad gain game time before our opening league match in just over a weeks’ time. There was also a Blues debut for summer signing Aniek Nouwen, who had just joined from PSV Eindhoven in her homeland, as the defender featured for the last 20 minutes at Kingsmeadow.

• Tickets our friendly match with Feyenoord will be at WSL match ticket prices. For all match ticket prices, please click here. For the full Chelsea Women 2024/25 ticket guide, including details of season tickets and match packages, click here.