Overall, the Chelsea manager was proud with the display. She was pleased with a bright start and although Leicester responded with a good spell of their own for a 15-minute period, once Chelsea scored and gained the upper hand, Hayes said her side were in control from then on in.

Two of the goals were Chelsea firsts for the players involved, while Mayra Ramirez scored her second for the club to make the score 2-0 at half-time with a solo effort, having won possession off the Foxes inside her own half.

‘Ramirez was immense. She showed her qualities, held the ball up well, led the line and scored a fantastic goal,’ said Hayes.

‘Good luck going 50-50 with her – they are not fouls, she is just stronger. She looked fresh and dangerous going forward. She is still adapting but she is slowly settling in and understanding our way of playing. She wanted to be important to the team in this game and she absolutely did that.

‘She is so proud to be at Chelsea and she is so excited to play for this club and demonstrate what she is capable of.

‘Nat Bjorn got her first goal for the club, we are delighted with that, and again she is really growing in a Chelsea shirt.’

Bjorn, a January signing from Everton, opened the scoring following a corner. Johanna Rytting Kaneryd was also on target but it was left to Catarina Macario, who made her debut as a substitute, to complete a victory that kept the Blues top of the table.

‘She hasn’t played football for more than 600 days,’ pointed out Hayes.

‘When she came to Chelsea she wasn’t in a fit state to play, until now. We did a lot of work with her off the pitch so for her to get this moment, I am so immensely proud of her and the team behind the team, the medical team and the performance team, who have put long hours into her.

‘She showed her quality with her first touch within minutes of coming onto the pitch and I can’t imagine what that must have felt like for her, to score how she did. I know the entire team were made up for her.

‘She is a super footballer and just what we need coming into the run-in. Of course she has to get more match-fit but she played her part.

‘I love her to bits. She is a great human and I knew bringing her to Chelsea we would have to go backwards before we went forwards. I can tell the Chelsea fans I am leaving you a super player and I hope she plays a big part in the remaining season. In the long-term, Chelsea have got an absolute world-class forward and so have the USA.

‘I am just proud of some of the young players and new players. They are growing into Chelsea shirts and I really enjoyed watching them.’