Flash in the pan—that’s how we would describe Naomi Girma‘s Chelsea debut. Why? Well, after much anticipation, the USWNT star finally got her first start in the WSL, only to be taken off the pitch in just 59 minutes due to an injury. While this isn’t how anyone expected Girma to kick off her journey with her new club, fans have instead pointed fingers at Sonia Bompastor and Co.

The wait of 32 days to see the most expensive player in the women’s game did come to an end but with an unfortunate outcome. Having signed for the Blues for a whopping $1 million from San Diego Waves, ardent supporters couldn’t even see Naomi complete her full game. The whole incident transpired in yesterday’s 2-2 draw vs Brighton.

Notably, it was during the 56th minute that Girma signaled the Chelsea bench about her potential injury. The 24-year-old was seen pointing towards her left calf before limping off the pitch. As the play continued, she sat on the pitch as the club physios ran out to check on their new player. However, one could have only expected bad news as Girma was eventually replaced by Nathalie Björn.

While the extent of her injury is still unclear, head coach Sonia Bompastor did address the situation. “We will need to assess her tomorrow,” she said in the post-match presser. “It doesn’t look too bad but we will probably need to have a scan tomorrow.”

In fact, the Dutch tactician subtly acknowledged that giving Girma her first start was not a mistake.

“She’s learning about the league, the team and her teammates. As you could see, the first game is never easy because it’s a competitive league,” Bompastor said. “It was good for us to have her start this game, building minutes and being able to play with the team.”

Remarkably, it wasn’t just Girma that Chelsea was unable to protect as Brighton took advantage of the defender’s absence to deny the away side a win. Throughout the game, the home side kept the Londoners on their toes. Sandy Baltimore opened the account for the Blues within 16 minutes but Brighton’s Marisa Olislagers equalized just 6 minutes later.

Things flipped for Chelsea after the home side was ahead before halftime time, courtesy of Vicky Losada. However, it was finally around the hour mark Lauren James came clutch to make it 2-2 just minutes after they had lost Girma. Despite the draw, Bompastor and Co. remain at the top, five points clear of Manchester United.

Then again, more than the draw, Chelsea fans have rather taken things personally against their own club due to Girma’s injury. No wonder the social media remains on fire with their reactions.

A spoiled debut of Naomi Girma boils up Chelsea fans’ anger!

Ardent Chelsea fans took over X to share their frustration over Naomi Girma’s injury. Whether it’s about Sonia Bompastor’s call to give the star signing a start or the fact that the player, unfortunately, injured herself, everything about this latest update has left the Blues community fuming.

To recall, the 7x WSL champions are already in an injury crisis. Players like Sam Kerr, Mia Fishel, and Femke Liefting are out of playing contention. If it was one thing that kept fans excited about anything, it was the debut of Girma. But clearly, the unfortunate turn of events has seen her first game getting marred due to an injury. So does this fan have a right to say that Chelsea is a jinxed team?

“Please save her from this cursed team”

This fan just might have used the right word to sum up Chelsea’s situation. Everyone was keen to see the first-ever million-dollar signing in action. However, talk about being unlucky, as Girma’s blockbuster debut turned out to be a flop.

“Anti-climax FC.”

Umm, hello Sonia Bompastor? Looks like the jury has decided you are at fault. Well, honestly, one can’t completely agree on that. Given how Björn, who replaced Girma, was also uncertain amidst other injuries, she probably didn’t think she had a choice but to give Girma her much-anticipated start. Now whether it came at the right or wrong time is just Chelsea and Girma’s fate. Yet, this fan thinks otherwise:

“Realistically she isn’t supposed to start and we’ll know that.”

Let’s take a moment to also talk about Girma. Having signed such a fat deal, imagine the kind of pressure she had to perform in the first game. We aren’t the ones to say whether she did right or not. But one thing is certain she wouldn’t have expected to see her debut go this way. 

“World record signing as well. Won’t have gone down well. Yikes”

At this point, we believe Chelsea are lucky they didn’t lose Naomi Girma in a home game. Otherwise, fans in the stadium would have lost it. Just imagine the sorrow there would have been in the eyes of all the supporters at Kingsmeadow, let alone the chants against the team and Bompastor. Don’t believe us? Take a look at this fan’s response as the all-caps make it even more scary!

“I WILL END IT ALL RIGHT NOW DON’T F***ING PLAY WITH ME OMG I CANT HANDLE THIS.”

One additional piece of advice that we believe should be heard is that Sonia Bompastor and her coaching staff should have at least checked on Naomi Girma during halftime. Sure, they weren’t aware it would come to this, but they did know how delicate her situation was. Coming back to play after a three-month sidelined period isn’t something normal.

Not to mention, she even missed the January camp and the recent SheBelieves Cup tournament for the USWNT. The ideal approach could have been to first ease her in as a substitute in the latter half before considering giving her a full game. Then again, we believe no one is at fault—it’s just a misfortune for both Chelsea and Naomi Girma.

Overall, let’s hope it’s not serious as it remains to be seen how they overcome this challenge.