By OkayGoal 
Chelsea held their nerve to defeat Aston Villa 4-3 in a thrilling match at Kingsmeadow this afternoon.
Sam Kerr, Naomi Girma, Lauren James and Sjoeke Nüsken got the goals as The Blues boosted their European qualification hopes.
It was Aston Villa who took an early lead inside the opening three minutes courtesy of Chasity Grant’s wide right-footed shot.
Sonia Bompastor’s Chelsea side looked to respond through James, but her left-footed effort was saved by Ellie Roebuck.
Chelsea equalised in the 19th minute through Kerr, whose shot from the centre of the box found the bottom-left corner before Girma headed in a second Blues goal from close range.
James then netted another for Chelsea four minutes later. She slotted the ball into the bottom-right corner past Roebuck.
Kirsty Hanson’s close-range effort gave the visitors hope before the same player equalised minutes after her first goal with another low shot past Hannah Hampton.
Natalia Arroyo’s side started the second half stronger, recording two attempts in the first five minutes through Lynn Wilms and Miri Taylor. The Villans then came close to taking the lead through Hanson, whose shot from outside of the box hit the bar.
Chelsea came on strong late in the match, creating a number of chances. It was Nüsken who eventually grabbed the winner eight minutes from time with a shot that found the bottom corner.
Lexi Potter and Océane Deslandes both had chances for their respective sides at the death but the scoreline remained 4-3.
Chelsea are back in action on Wednesday when they play host to Arsenal in the second leg of their UEFA Women’s Champions League quarter-final tie while Aston Villa now face a four-week break with no Adobe Women’s FA Cup involvement and the international break on the horizon.
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