Chelsea made a committed and fast start against the Gunners pay with three first-half goals, one from Lauren James and two from Sjoeke Nusken, with the visitors only able to add their goal to the scoresheet when it was too late to change the result.

It opened up a six-point gap on our London rivals and kept the pressure on closest challengers Man City, leaving the Chelsea manager satisfied with the evening’s work, with the actual scoreline of secondary importance.

‘I was invested in the performance, I was more interested in that than I was anything else,’ explained Hayes, ‘because I felt at the Emirates we really let ourselves down with the basics.

‘We started this game the better, we were aggressive, particularly with our first and second balls.

‘We haven’t got a striker,’ she pointed out. ‘I had to play Lauren James, who has been sick all week, up top and ask her to do a job for the team and she's had a tremendous game. But this isn't about LJ, it’s about the whole team and everything they did. Eve Perisset sometimes had a tough time against Caitlin Foord before but she was really outstanding. The better team won.’

Our manager did talk further about James and said she knows that on the big stage, the young England international can be relied upon to put in a great performance for the team.

‘It is a playground for her out there,’ she said. ‘Lauren is a maverick, not always perfect, not always consistent, but I understand that person and I know when we get to Stamford Bridge, she will 1,000 per cent perform for the team here.

‘She'd been sick all week. She came on against Everton last week and she wasn't very well. This week she came out for one training session I said look, you've got a go up top, we don’t have another striker, and I thought she played with joy, she played with freedom when the ball came to her feet, and she can carry the weight of the crowd.

‘She knows she's an important player to the team and she put in a shift again out of possession and the players behind really appreciate that when it happens.’

Speaking of the crowd, as the second half of the derby was playing out an attendance figure of 32,970 was announced over the PA.

‘I just love there being a big crowd, I really do,’ said Hayes. ‘I love seeing their away section and the rivalries that come with that. And then the rest of the stadium - there was a noise to it. There's an atmosphere. The women's game is growing and it was fun to see.

‘Everybody says Chelsea don't want to play big teams here but that is not the case. I love Kingsmeadow but I've always wanted to pack Stamford Bridge. Tonight felt like a home advantage for us so that's why it should be a celebration for all the people off the pitch who have worked to fill the stands, because it really made a difference for the team.’

- Chelsea Women will be back at the Bridge in the Champions League - click to buy tickets