Goals from Hannah Blundell and Erin Cuthbert gave Chelsea real hope of reaching the last four of the Champions League for the second season in succession but their success was marred by a group of visiting Paris Saint-Germain supporters armed with weapons who were turned away from the ground by police before kick-off.

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One person was arrested for possession of Class A drugs in dramatic events not usually associated with women’s club football, with police later confirming that they had confiscated knives and knuckledusters when they searched the fans’ coach. A group of PSG’s “ultra” supporters had earlier caused damage at the stadium before being escorted away from the ground and Chelsea’s manager, Emma Hayes, admitted she is hoping no Chelsea supporters will be dissuaded from making the trip to the French capital for the second leg next Wednesday as a result.

“I don’t think we should discourage anyone from going,” she said. “But at the same time we have got remember that the women’s game is progressing and the fans are following. With that comes the same level of scrutiny. But they have to behave, whether that’s our fans or theirs.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Erin Cuthbert of Chelsea scored her team’s second goal. Photograph: Chelsea Football Club/Chelsea FC via Getty Images

Hayes had acknowledged this week that the new deal with Barclays to sponsor the Women’s Super League – worth in excess of £10m over the next three seasons – could help England’s domestic league establish itself as the best in the world, describing it as a “watershed moment” for the women’s game in this country. Yet coming after the semi-final last season, when they were overwhelmed by Wolfsburg 5-1 on aggregate, this tie against the side who finished runners-up in both 2015 and 2017 was a real test of the progress that Chelsea have made under their manager.

A small band of PSG supporters did make it into the ground for kick-off and made themselves heard in a healthy crowd of more than 2,500 that included the former PSG defender David Luiz. But besides the impressive Karen Carney on Chelsea’s left flank, the home side struggled to create any meaningful chances in the opening half without Fran Kirby or Ramon Bachmann, both of whom started on the bench in what Hayes admitted was a tactical decision, as PSG settled quickly into their defensive shape.

Chelsea, who are heading for a third-place finish in WSL, have struggled in attack this season in comparison with the league leaders, Arsenal and Manchester City, and they lacked some incisiveness around the box against organised opponents.

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When a chance came for Chelsea just after the half-hour following a slip at the back, Cuthbert was slow to react and was quickly closed down, while another opportunity from a corner was eventually cleared without testing the PSG goalkeeper Christiane Endler. Kirby was summoned five minutes into the second half as a replacement for Ji So-yun as Hayes switched to a 4-2-3-1 and the change almost had the desired effect immediately as the England forward broke free but dragged her shot wide.

The Canadian international Ashley Lawrence served notice of PSG’s threat on the break when her curling effort was well saved by Chelsea’s goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger. Olivier Echouafni’s side are two points behind the reigning European champions, Lyon, in the French league, a competition their rivals have won 12 times in succession. They will be formidable opponents on home turf in the second leg despite Chelsea finding a way through twice after that, unless, of course, they follow the example of the men’s side against Manchester United earlier this month.

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The first seemed to come from nowhere as Blundell cut in from the right to curl home a sumptuous effort with her weaker foot in the 73rd minute before Bachmann and Kirby combined to set up Cuthbert’s goal late on. “We’re always competitive and we’re always progressing – this team is much further ahead than it was 12 months ago, regardless of our league position,” said Hayes.