After the midweek stalemate against FC Twente, Bompastor spoke about the need for clinical finishing. While Chelsea once again created plenty of chances in the first half against Spurs and had 45 touches in the opposition box, we managed only one shot on target before the break.
The second half continued in the same vein. More chances. More corners. In fact, the Blues won 15 corners in the first hour of the match.
With 30 minutes remaining, the frustration in the stands at Kingsmeadow was growing. We needed a moment of quality to breach the defence, and that's exactly what Keira Walsh provided with her powerful strike from the edge of the box. The celebrations were filled with relief.
The strike was so pivotal that the minutes which followed were almost without incident. That was until Lucy Bronze made her long-awaited return from injury to a huge cheer from the home supporters.
With the 1-0 win, we remain unbeaten in the Women's Super League during the Sonia Bompastor era and recorded our fifth victory of the season to stay top of the table.
Milestones passed
Skipper Millie Bright made her 300th appearance for the Blues and defensive partner Nathalie Bjorn also passed a major milestone, completing her half-century in a Blues shirt.
Bompastor switched up her side once more after the stalemate against Twente in midweek, bringing back Hannah Hampton in goal as well as a return for Bjorn, Walsh, Erin Cuthbert, Johanna Rytting Kaneryd, Wieke Kaptein and a fit-again Niamh Charles.
The Blues got off to a positive start when Charles played a ball down the line for Thompson, who burst into the box with an injection of pace, beat her marker Ashleigh Neville, and fired a shot on goal that went just over the bar.
Positive start
Enjoying plenty of possession in the opening 20 minutes, Chelsea won a total of seven corners, but the Tottenham defence held firm. Thompson looked lively in particular, with the American forward having fashioned three chances in the opening period of the match.
With Chelsea enjoying the vast majority of the possession, we then forged a clear-cut opportunity to score when Thompson played an instinctive reverse pass into the box for Aggie Beever-Jones, but Spurs keeper Lize Kop smothered the chance before the striker could really pull the trigger.
Tottenham – who had won four of their previous five Women's Super League games – had defended in numbers, but we could've headed in at the break having nicked the lead. Rytting Kaneryd's work down the right saw her play a dangerous ball into the box, but Kaptein couldn't connect with the goal at her mercy.
Chances aplenty
As the second half got under way, Bjorn fired a shot over the bar from a corner, and some more good work from Thompson saw her make a run from the wing into a central area where she could take a shot. Kop scrambled to the corner of her goal and just about got down to gather the attempt.
The pressure on the Spurs goal was increasing. Rytting Kaneryd powered into the box, pulled a pass back for Kaptein, who found Beever-Jones, but some last-ditch defending from the visitors quashed the danger once more.
On the hour mark, some space opened up for Carpenter on the edge of the box. The Australian went for the shot and Kop just about did enough to stop the attempt from dipping under the bar.
Deadlock broken
It was beginning to feel like the goal would never come. That was, until Carpenter teed up Walsh on the edge of the box. The England international turned her body slightly and quickly fired a low shot hard into the bottom corner.
After the visitors had given everything to keep the scores goalless, Walsh's strike seemed to take the wind out of their sails. While they kept Chelsea from adding to the score, they didn't threaten to equalise, as the sting was taken out of the contest in the final 15 minutes.
Aside from a hard-fought three points for the Blues, there was another positive moment for the home supporters when Bronze made her first appearance of the season, replacing Carpenter in stoppage time.
What it means
Chelsea remain two points clear of Manchester United at the top of the WSL table.
What comes next
We return to European action at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday evening, with a fixture against Paris FC.
The teams
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Hampton; Carpenter (Bronze 92), Bjorn, Bright (c), Charles (Buurman 56); Walsh, Cuthbert; Thompson (Reiten 78), Kaptein (Macario 56), Rytting Kaneryd; Beever-Jones (Kerr 78)
Unused subs: Peng, Nusken, Hamano, Jean-Francois
Scorer: Walsh 61
Booked: Carpenter 15, Bright 71