It had looked like we were heading for a very different result when Chelsea were awarded the first of those penalties inside the first minute, when Guro Reiten was tripped in the box by ex-Blues defender Gilly Flaherty.

Fran Kirby calmly tucked the spot-kick away and we threatened to race away early on as Erin Cuthbert went close and then Sam Kerr finished brilliantly after being set free by Kirby, but her goal was ruled out for offside despite replays appearing to show the Australian was level with the last defender.

However, although we had the vast majority of possession, we found chances harder to come by as the game went on and were harshly punished in the second half. First Liverpool equalised with a penalty of their own after the ball struck Millie Bright's arm in the box, allowing Katie Stengel to get the home side back in the game.

Then Stengel went down under Kadeisha Buchanan's challenge, with the referee pointing to the spot for Stengel to give the Reds a surprise lead in the 87th minute, which they would hold on to for the win, despite those two penalties being their only shots on target.

The selection

Emma Hayes handed a debut to summer signing Kadeisha Buchanan, who lined up at the centre of a back three, with Millie Bright and captain Magdalena Eriksson either side of her, in front of goalkeeper Zecira Musovic.

Lauren James made her first start in the Women’s Super League after an injury-hit first season with Chelsea, taking on a wing-back role on the right, with Niamh Charles on the left and Erin Cuthbert joined in midfield by Sophie Ingle, the latter a late addition to the team after Pernille Harder picked up an injury in the warm-up.

Sam Kerr led the line in attack, as part of a fluid front three alongside Fran Kirby and Guro Reiten.

Before kick-off there was a moment of silence in honour of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, observed by players, staff and a record crowd at Prenton Park for a Liverpool Women’s game. Both teams were also wearing black armbands.

Flying start

Chelsea made a rapid start to the game, putting Liverpool on the back foot and pressing high up to win the ball back, and it wasn’t long at all until that pressure told.

Inside the first minute, Reiten refused to give up on possession in the box and beat former Blue Flaherty to the ball, before being brought down by the defender’s outstretched leg, the referee showing no hesitation in blowing for a penalty.

Kirby stepped up to the spot and made no mistake, calmly letting the goalkeeper blink first and rolling a shot into the back of the net to give Chelsea the lead and take her tally to eight goals in nine WSL matches against Liverpool.

There was a let off for Chelsea to warn against complacency, when Emma Koivisto somehow fired over the crossbar from a few yards out, when Musovic failed to gather a cross from Liverpool’s left.

Kerr denied by the flag

Just inside 20 minutes it briefly looked like Kerr had doubled Chelsea’s lead. Kirby found her with a well-weighted ball over the top of Liverpool’s high defensive line and the Australian raced onto it before arcing a great finish on the bounce over the keeper and under the bar.

However, the official’s flag was raised on the far side and the goal was disallowed for an incredibly tight offside call, much to Kerr’s frustration. Cuthbert then went close with a dipping half volley from range when the Liverpool players stood off invitingly following a Chelsea throw-in, as we tried to make our dominance count.

The Blues were grateful for the raised flag when Liverpool finally managed to escape their own half after a long spell of Chelsea dominance, as Leanne Kiernan broke free behind our defence, but she only hit the post as she tried to round Musovic and replays showed she was a long way offside when receiving the pass.

With 15 minutes of the first half remaining, the hosts came into the action more, but it didn’t last long and Chelsea finished the half strongly, although the closest we were able to come to finding the second goal before the break was a Kerr header at the back post, but she couldn’t get enough on it and it bounced wide.

Pegged back after the break

Completely against the run of play Liverpool levelled from a penalty of their own in the second half. It was harsh on Bright, as the ball was flicked on from close range after a long throw bounced it’s way through the bodies in the box, but it struck her on the arm and the referee pointed to the spot. Katie Stengel tucked away the penalty to equalise with Liverpool’s first shot on target.

There was just over 20 minutes remaining and Chelsea soon returned to dominating possession and searching for a way through to retake the lead, and Kirby wasn’t far off getting on the end of a brilliant through-ball from Reiten.

Both sides then made a flurry of substitutions, with two new Blues coming on for their debuts, as Eve Perisset and Johanna Rytting Kaneryd replaced Bright and Reiten, but before they could settle into the game there was a long pause in play as Eriksson and Rachel Furness needed treatment after a nasty clash of heads. Thankfully both players were okay to continue.

Painful finish

That left Chelsea around 15 minutes to try and find the winning goal our performance had deserved. It wasn’t to be, though, as after Kirby was twice agonisingly close to playing in Kerr for a clear chance for a winner, disaster struck right at the end.

Stengel latched on to a long clearance by Liverpool and managed to evade Eriksson and Buchanan on the left before charging into the box. Buchanan slid in to deny her a shooting chance and won the ball, but the referee decided she had caught the player first and awarded a third penalty of the game, a WSL record.

Again, Stengel scored confidently from the spot to give Liverpool a lead which had looked unlikely for most of the game. There were only three minutes plus added time remaining, but despite Chelsea pinning Liverpool back around their own penalty area and sending a series of crosses into the box, we were unable to find an equaliser.

What's next?

Chelsea will be hoping to bounce back when we are in WSL action again next weekend, but it won't be easy as we host Manchester City at Kingsmeadow, with kick-off at 4pm on Sunday 25 September.

Chelsea (3-4-1-2): Musovic; Bright (Perisset 70), Buchanan, Eriksson (c); James (England 85), Cuthbert, Ingle (Cankovic 80), Charles; Kirby; Kerr, Reiten (Rytting Kaneryd 70)
Unused subs: Berger, Carter, Svitkova, Mjelde
Scorer: Kirby pen 3

Liverpool (3-4-3): Laws; Flaherty, Fahey, Matthews; Koivisto (Roberts 72), Kearns (Furness 72), Holland, Hinds; Lawley (Daniels 72), Stengel (Humphrey 90+5), Kiernan (Campbell 57)
Unused subs: Robe, Cumings, Kirby, Silcock
Scorers: Stengel pen 67, pen 87
Booked: Holland 18, Campbell 90+3

Referee: Emily Heaslip

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