Twenty-nine shots. Thirteen corners. Two goals ruled out for offside and a shot off the woodwork in stoppage time. Chelsea did almost everything in Gothenburg on Tuesday night except score, and Hacken held on for a 0-0 draw in the Women's Champions League.
It is the second time in four days that Sonia Bompastor's side have dropped points they expected to take. Saturday's home draw with Everton cost them top spot in the Women's Super League. This one keeps them unbeaten in Europe, and second in the league phase table, but it will sting.
Two goals, two flags
Chelsea thought they had the lead inside the opening ten minutes. Wieke Kaptein flicked the ball into the far corner and set off on a celebration, only for the whistle to go. Lexi Potter had been standing in an offside position right in front of goalkeeper Jennifer Falk, and the officials judged she was interfering.
Later in the first half it happened again. Kaptein turned on the halfway line and launched a long ball for Melvine Malard, who ran through and finished, but the French striker had gone fractionally too early and the flag was already up. Half-time came with the scoreline still blank, which, given the territory Chelsea had, felt faintly ridiculous.
Hacken's goalkeeper and Hacken's nerve
The Swedish champions, who won the first Women's Europa League, had lost their opening two Champions League games, 1-0 to Inter and 3-0 to Juventus. They defended deep and in numbers here and they had Falk in excellent form. She made five saves, and the Chelsea crosses that did get past the first defender usually found her rather than a blue shirt.
Hacken even had the best chance of the second half for a while. Alva Selerud spotted Livia Peng off her line and tried to lob her, but the shot lacked height and the Chelsea goalkeeper got back to claw it away. Maja Bodin also ran through late on, only for Veerle Buurman to put her under enough pressure that Peng could save comfortably.
At the other end Alyssa Thompson was played clean through by Manaka Matsukubo but tried to go round Falk and was blocked by a recovering defender. Then, with the clock almost done, Ellie Carpenter cut the ball back and Maika Hamano hit the woodwork first time. Hamano had already headed wide from a Carpenter cross a few minutes earlier. It was that kind of night.
What it means
Chelsea have eight points from four games, with two wins and two draws, and remain second behind Barcelona. They are unbeaten and have yet to concede in the competition, which is a decent return. The worry is at the other end. A side with Chelsea's attacking options should not be needing 29 shots to fail to beat a team that had not won any of its first three games.
For Hacken, two points from four matches is still a slow start, but this was the kind of performance they can build on. Bompastor will want a sharper edge before the WSL title showdown with Manchester City, and Erin Cuthbert's condition will need checking after she finished the game struggling following a late tackle.
Match facts: Hacken 0-0 Chelsea, UEFA Women's Champions League league phase, Gothenburg, Tuesday 10 November 2026. No goals; Chelsea had two first-half goals disallowed for offside (Kaptein, with Potter offside; Malard). Booking: Lexi Potter (Chelsea). Possession: Hacken 22%, Chelsea 78%. Shots: 4-29. On target: 3-6. Corners: 2-13. Saves: Falk 5, Peng 3. Chelsea second in the league phase on eight points; Hacken 14th on two. Source data: BBC Sport.
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