A blog of two halves

Chelsea Women passed their first tough test after the league winter break with flying colours, beating Manchester United at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

Last Saturday’s local derby at Stamford Bridge turned out to be one of those midday games that leaves the neutral viewer unsatisfied.

Chelsea have home advantage against Crystal Palace in the draw for the 5th Round of the Women’s FA Cup after coming from behind to defeat West Ham at the weekend.

Marco Silva’s players face a daunting but not impossible prospect in two weeks’ time when they meet Liverpool at the Cottage for their Carabao Cup semi-final return leg.

Going into the business end of the season is when it gets serious. In QPR’s case, very serious.

After the first legs of the League Cup semis, an all-west London final at Wembley is still within Fulham and Chelsea’s grasp.

Chelsea have a double dose of cup football looming, with 6,000 Preston North End fans descending on SW6 at 5.30pm on Saturday 6 January for a third-round FA Cup clash.

Fulham ended the year gloriously with a long-awaited victory over the Arsenal.

A Madueke penalty gave Chelsea a 2-1 win over Crystal Palace at the Bridge, wiping out the Christmas Eve disappointment of defeat at Wolves, and boosting confidence ahead of Saturday’s journey to Luton Town.

After five-goal victories over Nottingham Forest and West Ham, the fixtures closest to Christmas both turned out to be disappointments.