The USA international played under Bompastor during the last of her two seasons in France, before the pair reunited when the 44-year-old joined the Blues - who play Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday in the Women's Super League - last summer.

Similarly, Macario is in her fourth season as a professional player with Bompastor in her fourth campaign as a head coach. During this time, both have achieved much success whilst progressing in their respective roles.

We sit with Macario at Cobham and outline our plans to chat about Bompastor’s coaching journey from the perspective of one of her players.

She seems intrigued by the idea and as we begin the conversation, the forward’s respect for her head coach immediately shines through. The first question we put to Macario focuses on her first impressions of Sonia and how that has evolved.

‘Obviously, she’s a legend of the game,’ she answers. ‘Both Sonia and Camille (Abily) are.’

Bompastor’s legacy is something we will go on to discuss in more detail - but, the makings of a serial winner as both a player and a manager, Macario says, is rooted in a focus on some of the more precise things on the pitch.

‘I knew Sonia was very demanding, in the best way,’ the 25-year-old continues. ‘She was always demanding quality and excellence.

‘She pays attention to the details and that is something that distinguishes her from other coaches. She pushes you to be your very best. She’ll be straight up with you with what she wants.

'Whenever I think about Sonia, I think about the attention to detail – the quality of the pass, the pace of it, the accuracy, and which foot you’re playing it to. It’s those things that make a big difference and can dictate the decisions you make.

‘She’s more confident in herself now. She’s now been through many more seasons and experienced a lot more. But, it’s still only her fourth season as a head coach and she has already achieved so much which is a big testament to her and her staff.

‘She focuses on the little details. When you’re playing, you might not always understand why but she knows her stuff and at the end of the day, you need to make those things a priority as they can be the difference between achieving success or not.

'When you’re a professional player, you think you know that already, but it’s not until you work with somebody like Sonia when you’re like you actually know why.'

Bompastor knows what it takes to win on the pitch and from the touchline.

As a player, she won many domestic trophies in her native France at Montpellier and Lyon and won the UEFA Champions League on two occasions with the latter.

Upon retiring, Bompastor would take the reins at Lyon in 2021 and guided her side to six pieces of domestic silverware and a Champions League title, with Macario netting the third goal in a 3-1 defeat of Barcelona.

Her winning prowess has already been made clear at Chelsea, with our head coach leading the Blues to an ongoing 24-game unbeaten run across all four competitions.

With a career synonymous with success, how does that experience inform Bompastor’s approach as a coach? What is it like to be educated by someone who has once been in your shoes?

‘It’s massive,’ Macario explains. ‘No matter what, even if she wasn’t my coach at Chelsea, you would look at her differently because of how successful she was with France and with Lyon, and with every club that she played for.

‘It’s a great honour to be coached by her and Camille. If they tell you to do something you do it because they have been in our position and know what it takes. It’s a tremendous privilege.

‘When it comes to player management, it probably helps that she was a player because she has her own experiences and knows how she likes to be treated. Like, how would she want things communicated to her?

‘From her seasons as a coach at Lyon, she will have learned how to manage people. It’s a very long season and not everyone can play every single minute of every game.

‘Every experience she’s had has helped things fall into place and made her the coach that she is today.’

Not only does Bompastor know how to make teams successful, but she also knows how to develop individuals. That has been a great benefit for Macario who endured a difficult spell at Lyon and when she arrived at the Blues.

After tearing her anterior cruciate ligament with the French club in June 2022, the American had to wait 641 days until she stepped out onto the pitch again and she did so as a Chelsea player in March of last year.

‘It has been an interesting ride!’ the forward explains. ‘Sonia is the coach I’ve spent the most time with since I turned pro, even though I was injured for a bit of it.

‘For me, she knows what I was like before. She saw my potential and really helped me. Sonia, Camille and Theo (Rivrin) have all helped me.

‘They told me what my strengths were, how I could use them and what I needed to work on.

‘Personally, it’s been nice that they knew me before my injury and now we’re all working together now at Chelsea. They know I’ve not reached my best level yet, so I appreciate the confidence they have in me and their patience.

‘They know what I can bring to the team and that is something really nice to have when you have been through an injury like I had.’

Bompastor has been a key figure throughout Macario’s career. Under her leadership, she has gained an appreciation for the finer details and thrives off a desire to reach her full potential. Only time will tell what the pair will go on and achieve at Chelsea together...