Chelsea and Lyon bring leads into return legs of Women's Champions League semifinals
LONDON (AP) — Emma Hayes didn’t want anyone to get carried away by Chelsea’s surprise 1-0 win over Barcelona last week in the Women’s Champions League semifinals.
That’s because Chelsea needs to finish the job Saturday in the second-leg match in order to reach just its second final — in Hayes’ final season at the club.
Defending champion Barcelona won at Stamford Bridge in the semifinals a year ago and arrived in London with more than enough firepower — evident on the team airplane emblazoned with players’ images — to make a comeback.
Lyon faces Paris Saint-Germain on Sunday at Parc des Princes in the other second-leg semifinal. Eight-time champion Lyon trailed 2-0 but came back to win 3-2 in last week’s opener.
The final is on May 25 in Bilbao, Spain.
Here’s a closer look at the second-leg matches:
CHELSEA-BARCELONA
Even with a high-powered attack led by playmaker and Ballon d’Or winner Aitana Bonmati, Barcelona failed to get a shot on target in the first leg. That should change as Barcelona will look to play much faster. Erin Cuthbert’s 40th-minute goal was enough for Chelsea to hand Barcelona its first home loss in five years. The Blues stayed compact in defense and took away passing lanes. Some of Barcelona’s problems were self-inflicted: Salma Paralluelo misfired on a couple of second-half chances before two-time Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas put a shot wide from point-blank range just before the final whistle. A year ago, Caroline Graham Hansen scored early at Stamford Bridge in Barcelona’s 1-0 first-leg victory. Barcelona beat Wolfsburg 3-2 in last season’s Champions League final for its second title. Chelsea reached the final in 2021, losing 4-0 to Barcelona. Both coaches are headed to the United States after the season. Hayes is taking over as coach of the U.S. women’s national team. Barcelona coach Jonatan Giráldez will be the coach of the NWSL’s Washington Spirit.