THE LOWDOWN
Arsenal take a 2-1 lead to Lyon for their Champions League semi-final second leg on Saturday afternoon. The Gunners came from behind in the first leg and travel to France with a slender lead. In last season’s semi-final Renee Slegers’ side came to Lyon for the second leg a goal down.
Arsenal have good recent memories of playing at Parc OL with a 5-1 win in the 2022-23 group stage and a 4-1 victory in last season’s semi-final. The dynamic will be slightly different on this occasion with Arsenal nursing a narrow advantage and Lyon set to get Melchie Dumornay and Selma Bacha back in their squad.
The Gunners managed to rotate heavily at home to Leicester on Wednesday night and still managed to win 7-0, which is good preparation. Lyon rotated pretty much their entire team for a 1-1 draw against Nantes, but Lyon already have their domestic league wrapped up as they usually tend to do at this stage of the season.
Lyon have high competition IQ in the Champions League but so do Arsenal now, it’s their third UWCL semi-final in four seasons. Arsenal cannot go to Lyon simply to defend their one goal lead, the French side will leave space in behind as the Gunners found last week.
TEAM NEWS
Steph Catley (calf) and Beth Mead (personal reasons) are still absent but Chloe Kelly returns after missing the first leg with a muscle strain. Manu Zinsberger, Katie Reid and Michelle Agyemang are out with ACL injuries, Kyra Cooney-Cross is on compassionate leave.
Available squad
Goalkeepers: 13.Votikova 14.van Domselaar 28.Borbe 40.Williams
Defenders: 2.Fox 3.Wubben-Moy 5.L.Codina 6.Williamson 11.McCabe 24.Hinds 31.Holmberg
Midfielders: 8.Mariona 10.Little(c) 12.L.Maanum 21.Pelova
Forwards: 15.Smith 18.Kelly 19.Foord 23.Russo 25.Blackstenius
A WORD FROM THE BOSS
‘The diversity we have in the group is really important, we have played younger players at different stages. We know what it takes and we’re ready, we also know we need experience and leadership. But that is not only on the pitch, that is every day that we are ready as a team.
‘It is very simple, you can’t compare this game with last year. Everything is different this year and the scenario is different, last time we were 2-1 down now we are 2-1 up so everything is different. We have to earn the right from the very start so I do not compare the two occasions this year and last year. We have to start all over again.
‘If you look at the two teams it is two really strong squads going against each other, so you will have players starting and players coming on and finishing and we will see how both teams manage that tomorrow. But we know Lyon have
LAST TIME OUT
When the teams met last weekend at Arsenal Stadium, Lyon took a first half lead through Jule Brand. But Arsenal came back in the second half with an own goal from Ingrid Engen and a late goal from Olivia Smith.
https://youtu.be/CcUQSoDdy7w?si=wPDwktMlpv-EJLlW
THE OPPOSITION
Lyon have their domestic league wrapped up and have won 18 of the last 19 championships in France. Lyon have won this competition a record eight times and captain Wendie Renard has played in every single one. Striker Ada Hegerberg is the competition’s record scorer.
Now owned by US billionaire Michelle Kang, Lyon boast a global coterie of stars and they will welcome Melchie Dumornay and Selma Bacha back into the squad this week having missed both of them in the first leg. Dumornay has scored three goals in her last four games against the Gunners.
Lyon will be conscious that Arsenal have beaten them handily on their last two visits. Over 20,000 tickets have been sold for this game and Lyon will look to harness the power of the home crowd and they will look to make a fast start and pin Arsenal back early.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Leah Williamson interview by Arseblog News.
Leah Williamson signed a new contract with Arsenal this week and this is the sort of game that she has become very familiar with. A double European Championship winner and a Champions League winner last season, Williamson is the calibre of player who tends to dig deep for a top class performance in the biggest games.
Lyon are a team who press high and are lethal in transition, as Arsenal have found to their cost several times over the last year. Williamson’s defensive acumen will be tested to its fullest and her ability to play out from the back will be an integral part of how Arsenal will approach this game.
Last week, Arsenal were perhaps too eager to go over the top of the Lyon press too quickly in the first half, something they fixed in the second half. Choosing the moments to go over the top and when to trust the technical level of Mariona and Little will be key in this game and Williamson and Wubben-Moy will have a lot of responsibility.
MY PREDICTED LINE-UP
Subs: 5.L.Codina 12.L.Maanum 13.Votikova 18.Kelly 21.Pelova 24.Hinds 28.Borbe 31.Holmberg 44.Harwood
HOW TO CATCH THE GAME
The game kicks off at 2pm on Saturday at Parc OL and will be broadcast live on Disney+ and the BBC in the UK. Full global listings for the game are available here
COMING UP
We will have the line-ups posted around an hour before kickoff, Aidan Gibson’s on the whistle match report and every word from Renee Slegers’ post-match press conference around an hour after full-time. Jamie and I will record a podcast for you on Monday.
Hopefully you saw our exclusive interview with Leah Williamson on our YouTube channel this week. Don’t forget to subscribe to our free weekly Arsenal Women Newsletter.