Ji's long list of achievements grows as Chelsea win third FA Cup

Chelsea F.C. Women won their third FA Cup title on Sunday, beating Arsenal 3-0 in the final at Wembley Stadium in London. Ji So-yun was on the bench for most of the game, coming on in the 86th minute to round off her 8th FA Cup on the pitch.

Ji So-yun celebrates Chelsea winning the FA Cup at Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

Chelsea F.C. Women won their third FA Cup title on Sunday, beating Arsenal 3-0 in the final at Wembley Stadium in London.

Fran Kirby opened the scoring for Chelsea in the third minute, with Sam Kerr scoring two more to cement the victory. Korean midfielder Ji So-yun was on the bench for most of the game, coming on as a substitute in the 86th minute to round off her eighth FA Cup in a Chelsea shirt on the pitch.

Sunday's victory adds more silverware to Ji's already impressive trophy cabinet.

The 30-year-old has been a part of the Chelsea squad for all three of their FA Cup wins; in 2015, 2018 and 2021. She's appeared in 23 FA Cup matches over the years, scoring 15 goals despite playing mainly as a playmaker.

Ji joined Chelsea in 2014 and has quickly a crucial anchor at the center of the squad. Since Ji joined the squad, Chelsea have won five Super League titles, three FA Cups, two League Cups and the Community Shield. This year alone, Chelsea won the treble, with the league title, FA Cup and League Cup.

Over the years she has won both the 2014 FA Players' Player of the Year and 2014-15 PFA Players' Player of the Year. She was nominated for the FIFA Women's World Player of the Year last year, and just last week ESPN put her at No. 18 on a list of the 50 greatest players in the world.

"Ji is a complete midfielder," ESPN said, "chipping in with goals and assists, but then doubling that up with an unrelenting engine in defense alongside her ability just to keep everything ticking along. The Korean international has been at Chelsea since 2014 and integral in their rise to one of Europe's top teams."

On the international level, Ji overtook Korean footballing legend Cha Bum-kun, better known as Tscha Bum, earlier this year to become the highest-scoring national team player of all time across all teams, all divisions, all genders and all competitions. Ji now has 61 goals and 125 caps to her name.

Chelsea have no time to sit back and celebrate their FA Cup win. With the 2021-22 Super League already well underway, Chelsea will be back in action with a game against Reading on Saturday. Before then, Chelsea have another tough fixture, taking on Juventus in the Champions League on Wednesday.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]