UEFA Women’s Champions League Second Leg – Thursday Fixtures | OneFootball

Barcelona vs. Real Madrid

Barcelona lead 6-2 on aggregateKickoff: 12:45pm ET / 9:45am PTBroadcast on ESPN Deportes; streaming on Paramount+

1st Leg Summary

Barcelona completely imposed themselves on Real Madrid in every metric possible. The Blaugrana had 71% possession and fifteen shots total.

The first goal came courtesy of Ewa Pajor, tapping in from a couple of yards out. The second came from a Vicky López cross, which was headed in at the back post by Esmee Brugts. Real Madrid pulled one back on the half-hour after a well-worked move ended with Linda Caicedo rounding Cata Coll and halving the deficit. Two minutes later, Barca’s one-goal lead would become two again as Irene Paredes nodded in a corner. By the second half, Madrid had started to look disjointed, a point that was hammered home as Clara Serrajordi’s intricate pass was finished by Pajor. The fifth was a move that started in the centre of the pitch, spread out to Caroline Graham Hansen, who beat her marker and crossed for Vicky López to convert.

Real Madrid’s second goal perhaps showed the way to goal when playing against Barcelona. Since Barcelona presses high and requires numbers to create overloads, this, on occasion, leaves the centre-backs isolated and having to defend a lot of space. Space this time was left for Paredes to defend against Caicedo, whose dribbling and finishing gave us the goal of the day.

Barcelona’s sixth once again came from Graham Hansen, passing her opponent and winning a penalty that Alexia would score.

2nd Leg Keys

Real Madrid could play in a deep block of five to stop the fullbacks from being isolated. The low block could result in Los Merengues playing long balls for their attackers as Barcelona looks to break their resistance.

Madrid will need to focus on closing off central spaces before the ball can get to Barcelona’s wingers. If the centre remains shut, Barcelona may become frustrated and start trying their luck from distance.

OL Lyonnes vs. VfL Wolfsburg

VfL Wolfsburg lead 1-0 on aggregateKickoff: 3:00pm ET / 12:00pm PTBroadcast on ESPN Deportes; streaming on Paramount+

Wolfsburg managed to defeat one of their long-term continental foes thanks to a deflected Lineth Beerensteyn strike inside fifteen minutes. The Shewolves did have to ride their luck at times, facing a consistent barrage of shots throughout. Wolfsburg played with a back five and were more than happy to let OL Lyonnes have 59% possession, which became increasingly apparent as the second half went on. The absence of the departing club legend Alex Popp was felt. Her ability to hold the ball and flick it on may have been very useful with Beerensteyn’s pace and against Lyon’s high line.

OL used the flanks to their advantage, where fullbacks Selma Bacha and Ashley Lawrence were given ample room to get forward. Bacha’s fifteen crosses came as a result of Lyon’s aggression. The majority of the game saw Lyonnes camped inside Wolfsburg’s box, but a lack of precision and perhaps controversial refereeing decisions mean the French side has a deficit to overturn.

2nd Leg Keys

Wolfsburg’s goal was created by Vivien Endemann, taking the ball from inside her own half, then taking advantage of the positioning of the full back. Svenja Huth provided Wolfsburg with their best chance of the game, a headed Beerensteyn effort. This chance was created due to Lyon being too slow to press, giving Thea Bjelde space to find Sevenja Huth, who was able to pick out Wolfsburg’s number nine.

As Melchie Dumornay is Lyon’s most attacking midfielder, Wolfsburg had more space on the right to rotate between Beerensteyn, Endemann and Linder.

OL caught Wolfsburg out on a few pressing situations, leading to some high-quality chances. If Wolfsburg use a 5-4-1 against Lyon’s 4-3-3, Lyonnes will have an extra player in the midfield, causing Wolfsburg to play long balls to their isolated attackers.