The Chelsea action was back in full flow throughout January following the World Cup and winter breaks with plenty of excitement over the course of the month. Now there are seven nominated goals from across our men’s, women’s and Academy sides for you to pick from in our Goal of the Month competition.
Although it wasn’t the most prolific of months for our men’s team, there is still senior representation on the shortlist in the form of Kai Havertz, while Sam Kerr makes the list twice, alongside team-mate Fran Kirby, for Chelsea Women after their three undefeated matches in January, including a pair of thrilling victories over Tottenham and Liverpool.
It is in our Academy where the goals have really flowed over the last month, though, with our development squad and Under-18s netting an impressive 22 goals between them, including seven in one game against Norwich City by the younger age group, with Louis Flower, Charlie Webster and Dion Rankine’s efforts being the pick of the bunch.
You can watch all those nominated goals in the video and vote for your favourite using the link below.
Kai Havertz vs Crystal Palace
At times Chelsea were frustrated by Palace goalkeeper Vicente Guaita, but it was Kai Havertz who found the breakthrough with the only goal of the game in the second half, to give us a 1-0 win at Stamford Bridge.
It arrived via a patient short-corner routine between Conor Gallagher and Hakim Ziyech, which resulted in the Moroccan international whipping a cross towards the near post, where Havertz had timed his run perfectly to rise highest and plant a powerful header into the bottom corner.
Sam Kerr vs Arsenal
This massive top-of-the-table clash in WSL at the Emirates Stadium ended with the points shared, but it required an 89th-minute equaliser from Sam Kerr to secure the 1-1 draw and maintain Chelsea Women’s lead in first place.
Much of the credit goes to Jelena Cankovic, too, who spotted Kerr’s clever run between the Arsenal centre-backs and delivered a pinpoint ball over the top into the Australian’s path. The rest was never in doubt, as Kerr confidently guided her header into the back of the net.
Fran Kirby vs Tottenham Hotspur
Another Chelsea Women goal which owes as much to the assist as the finish, Fran Kirby scored our second of a 3-1 win away at Tottenham in the quarter-finals of the Continental League Cup.
Lauren James did brilliantly to jink away from her marker out on the right touchline and drive into the penalty area, before showing composure to pick out Kirby to her left. The striker was just as calm, though, as she curled a first-time finish beyond the goalkeeper.
Sam Kerr vs Liverpool
Sam Kerr’s second nomination in January is the first of her three against Liverpool in our thrilling 3-2 victory in the Women’s FA Cup fourth round, as the Australian proved too much for the Reds to handle by netting a hat-trick.
She opened the scoring just after the half-hour mark with a crisp volley, swivelling to smash a shot into the top corner following good work on the right by Lauren James and Niamh Charles.
Louis Flower vs Norwich City
The best was saved for last in our Under-18s’ thrashing of Norwich City in the Premier League, as Louis Flower put the icing on the cake of a massive 7-1 victory.
The forward completed the scoring with his second of the game, producing an acrobatic bicycle kick to smash in the rebound after Frankie Runham’s initial effort had been saved.
Charlie Webster vs Leicester City
Shortly before signing a contract extension which commits him to Chelsea until 2024, Charlie Webster produced a stunning strike to complete a 2-0 victory over Leicester City for our development squad in the Premier League 2.
Dion Rankine won possession in a dangerous area and laid the ball off for Webster, with the midfielder showing no hesitation as he fired a shot into the top corner from long range.
Dion Rankine vs Wolverhampton Wanderers
The second nomination from our development squad also comes for a 2-0 win over a Midlands side in the Premier League 2, this time for Dion Rankine against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
It was a team effort in a lightning counter-attack which started deep in our own half, but the left corner flag, The ball was fed forward and across field quickly via Charlie Webster and Mason Burstow, before Rankine’s pace did the rest, taking him clear of the Wolves defence to slot into the bottom corner.
2022/23 Goal of the Month winners
December – Mason Mount vs Bournemouth
November – Cesare Casadei vs Peterborough United
October – Conor Gallagher vs Crystal Palace
September – Ben Chilwell vs West Ham
August – Kalidou Koulibaly vs Tottenham