Football Is Passion

Canada international Kadeisha Buchanan will miss the Blues’ FA Women’s Cup semi-final against Aston Villa on Sunday.

Chelsea defender Kedisha Buchanan is set to join fellow centre-back Millie Bright on the injury list ahead of the Blues’ FA Cup semi-final clash against Aston Villa on Sunday.

But manager Emma Hayes maintains her squad is more than equipped to deal with such obstacles as they continue to look for silverware.

The reigning league champions have been without defensive stalwart Bright since last month’s Champions League quarter-final, the first league win over Lyon in which the 29-year-old suffered a knee injury.

And the Blues must deal another blow to their defensive ranks with Buchanan ruled out of the weekend’s semi-final after suffering an injury on international duty with Canada, forcing Hayes to admit his There is no timeline for the 27-year pass. Return of the old.

The news comes as Chelsea enter the race for a strong fixture as they face back-to-back semi-finals in the FA Women’s Cup and Champions League. Chelsea are second in the league table behind Manchester United with a game to play.

Nevertheless, Hayes remained upbeat in her assessment of the depth of her enviable squad, maintaining that injuries provide opportunities for talent on the bench looking to stake a claim on the team sheet.

‘Nothing has changed because of this [injury],” Hayes said on Friday in the build-up to this weekend’s clash. We build a squad to prepare for those moments and the players want that responsibility.

We have players in our squad who want opportunities, they want to continue to impress and the fact that we are a team full of international players, we have the qualities to compete.

Aston Villa are a familiar opponent for Chelsea. Having beaten the Villains 3-0 away from home in a Women’s Super League match just before the international break. Goals from Gaurav Ratin, Jelena Kankovic and Kerr sealed the victory.

Still, Hayes hasn’t ruled out Sunday’s opponents. Insisting instead that she expects a “tougher match” than two weeks ago, especially given Villa’s home advantage and the cup tie arising. With hidden drama.

“I think Villa will be disappointed with their performance and I would expect a more aggressive performance from Villa with a full home crowd,” Hayes said. “I think it will be a very different game, I think it will be a tough game, anything can happen.

“There’s a cup final on the line and we’ll be ready as we always know at the end of the game we want to go to Wembley.”

Hayes stressed the importance of executing fundamentals against Villa. Will the absence of key defenders Buchanan and Bright prove beneficial for England international Rachel Daly?

Who is the second top goalscorer in the WSL and FA Cup behind Manchester City’s Khadija Shaw remains to be seen. Chelsea’s FA Cup semi-final against Aston Villa kicks off at 2:15pm on Sunday.