The group stage of this season’s UEFA Women’s Champions League culminated in dramatic fashion for all three English sides. Despite Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester City all having already qualified for the quarter-finals, the WSL still had first place in their respective groups to play for. Chelsea came from behind to beat Real Madrid 2-1 and join Lyon as the only team with a perfect record so far in this season’s competition, while Arsenal came out on top after a 3-2 thriller with Bayern Munich.
Manchester City however were not so successful, with a tough rematch against Barcelona. The Catalan side were 3-0 winners, meaning they finished top of their group thanks to a superior goal difference in games between the two sides.
There is no country protection in the quarter-finals so Chelsea or Arsenal could face Manchester City in the next round. The draw will take place on February 7th with first legs being played on March 18th/19th and second on the 26th/27th. First placed teams in the groups will be drawn at home for the second leg…
Slegers and Russo continue Arsenal revival
Arsenal’s home win over Bayern Munich was not just a reversal of fortunes from the reverse fixture but was emblematic of their improved form under interim manager Renee Slegers.
An 85th minute Mariona Caldentey penalty secured the comeback from 2-1 down to 3-2, a huge improvement on the 5-2 defeat suffered in their previous meeting under Jonas Eidevall. The three points ensure that Arsenal finish top of their group, which means they will avoid Chelsea and Barcelona in the next round.
Instrumental to this turnaround was Alessia Russo. Scoring her seventh goal in six games, the forward was a key part of Arsenal’s build up in the first half, dropping deeper and becoming a key point of contact as Arsenal transitioned from defence to attack.
Interim Arsenal boss Renee Slegers secured yet another win (Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
Russo led the front line by the end of the second half, after Stina Blackstenius’ substitution, but in both cases led the Arsenal press that was so important in disrupting Bayern.
Having not started life at Arsenal quite as fiercely as many fans had hoped or expected since her transfer in 2023, Russo is increasingly filling the expectations that were placed upon her.
While Arsenal did not manage to completely nullify the Bayern attack, they won the set piece battle in a game that did not feature a single open play goal out of the five.
The win is Slegers’ tenth since taking over from Eidevall, the team remaining unbeaten in that time. The permanent role going to anyone else is becoming increasingly unlikely.
Jessica Hopkins
Winter break coming at a good time for City
It was always going to be a tough ask for Manchester City’s injury-decimated side to repeat their impressive performance against Barcelona on matchday 1. There were six changes between the starting XI back in October and the one at the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona, with key players Bunny Shaw, Lauren Hemp and Alex Greenwood all missing.
City were under pressure from the start with 20 year old goalkeeper Khiara Keating keeping them in the match for most of the first half. Keating appears to have taken back her starting spot for City, having been dropped at the beginning of the season for Ayaka Yamashita, and her shot stopping prowess was clear to see. It would have taken a miracle to hold on though and Claudia Pina first broke City’s resolve in the 44th minute, before Aitana Bonmati and Alexia Putellas ensured Barcelona would finish in top spot with goals on 57 and 69 minutes.
Barcelona’s players celebrate Bonmati’s goal (Alex Caparros/Getty Images)
The biggest disappointment for City will be how much of the pressure they found themselves under was self-inflicted. Without Shaw, City do not have the same kind of physical presence to hold up the ball, with manager Gareth Taylor opting to use midfielder Jess Park as his striker with forward Mary Fowler out wide. As a result, City were repeatedly playing out from the back — and straight into trouble. Physically spent as a squad, the counter press that was so effective in the first match against Barcelona was nowhere to be seen. It was only when the game was long beyond them that they showed any real attempt to get back into it.
City’s aim in this group would always have been to qualify for the next round, given their failure to even make it this far in the competition in recent years. Few would have expected them to have even been in a position to top the group when the original draw was made. The winter break has come at a crucial time for them, and the hope will be they look far closer to their October selves by the point March comes around.
Jessy Parker Humphreys
Macario on the spot to save Chelsea more Madrid woe
Real Madrid’s Estadio Alfredo di Stefano had not previously been a happy hunting ground for Chelsea, with the London side having failed to win on their two previous visits. When Hannah Hampton’s save from Caroline Weir’s shot looped over her head and into the back of the net, it looked like their bad relationship with the stadium was set to continue.
Sonia Bompastor was once again forced to make a half-time substitution with her Chelsea side labouring to create anything, as Madrid defended their 1-0 lead, knowing that if they held on it would be enough for them to top the group. That would have been a considerable achievement given last season’s bottom-placed finish in a group that contained Chelsea, BK Hacken and Paris FC.
As it was, the introduction of Catarina Macario proved crucial. She had the ball in the back of the net within a minute of coming on, but it was correctly flagged offside, before missing a one-v-one opportunity. She made no mistake from the penalty spot, however, when she was brought down by Madrid fullback Olga Carmona. Five minutes later, in the 56th minute, she scored another penalty after Carmona was adjudged to have handled the ball.
Chelsea turn their game in Madrid around thanks to Macario (Harriet Lander/Getty Images)
“Catarina Macario changed the game and showed tonight that she is a world-class player,” said Bompastor in her post-match press conference. “I’m really pleased with her performance. I know Catarina really well and I know her potential. I know what she can bring to the team.”
”She’s still in a process where she’s building her fitness. We’re working with the performance staff to make sure she can play more minutes, and show her best level.
”For the 45 minutes she played tonight, this is what we expect from her, but we also need to help her get back to her best fitness.”
Much like City, Chelsea have looked like a team running on fumes towards the end of December, with the winter break being much welcomed by Bompastor. As players like Macario continue to work on their fitness, the club will also be hoping that longer-term absentees like Lauren James and of course, Sam Kerr, can make a return in 2025.
Jessy Parker Humphreys
(Top photo: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
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