Key events
13 min: Horan is now back to her feet and she will continue in this match but she did get a fair whack there, should have been a penalty but we go on.
12 min: It has been a great response from the visitors and the goal is a deserved reward. Boos rain down here as Lyon want a penalty for a foul on Horan, she has remained down but no penalty has been given. No VAR here remember.
10 min: A well worked corner sees Cerna hit home and the team celebrate as though they have won the tournament. What a lovely moment. It’s just their second goal of the entire WCL campaign.
GOAL! Lyon 1-1 Slavia Prague (Cerna, 10′)
Wow!
8 min: Lyon almost have their second in as many minutes as Hegerberg is a whisker away from finding Van de Donk, it’s out for a goal kick.
6 min: The visitors had started brightly but they were just outnumbered on the break, this could be a very long evening for them.
GOAL! Lyon 1-0 Slavia Prague (Majri, 5′)
Slavia Prague had a corner but the delivery isn’t on the money and Lyon countered through Diani. She squared it to Majri who hit home.
4 min: Some solid work from Slavia Prague as they look to come forward but Bacha intercepts a slightly loose pass. Hegerberg then wins a free kick from a foul, it’s quite a way out though and so the French team will have to build from deep. It’s taken but it goes straight into touch.
2 min: Both teams finding their feet in this one but it is Lyon in possession now, Hegerberg looks to pounce but she is offside.
Kick-off! Lyon 0-0 Slavia Prague
We are underway. Will Lyon blow Slavia Prague away again? Or can the visitors cause an upset? We will soon find out.
The players are out and this game is almost underway. How many goals will we see? All to come.
Chelsea finished the group stage with a bang, a 4-0 result over Paris FC. You can catch up with the action here:
Harriet Osborn has emailed and said: “How’s the cold? I’m fond of an ice cold ginger beer to clean my nose out. More to the point, I don’t think I’ve seen a bench as scary as Lyon’s in a while. What a recruiting department they must have.”
I am feeling a bit better today thank you but I’ll take your suggestion to speed up the recovery. And yes Lyon are brutal, it’s so impressive to have that many stars in one team.
The eight quarter-finalists have now been confirmed and for the first time ever in the Women’s Champions League there is not a German team involved. Bayern Munich were eliminated last night after drawing 2-2 with PSG.
The quarter-final draw will take place on 6 February and the group winners – Barcelona, Lyon, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea – will be drawn against the runners-up – Benfica, Brann, Ajax and Häcken.
Who would you like to see go against each other? Get in touch and let me know.
A fun fact for you:
Have you been listening to our women’s football podcast? Here’s the latest edition with a focus on Aston Villa’s Conti Cup controversy:
Tonight’s match is Sonia Bompastor’s 100th game in charge of Lyon. In that time she has won two French league titles, the WCL and three other French cups. And incredible feat for a manager who took over at the French club in 2021.
The team news is in! Lyon are not holding back despite already qualifying for the quarters with a front line of Diani, Hegerberg and Majri.
Lyon: Benkarth, Carpenter, Gilles, Sombath, Bacha, Van de Donk, Egurrola, Horan, Diani, Hegerberg, Majri
Slavia Prague have trusted captain Bartovicova leading the defence in a tricky fixture.
Slavia Prague: Lukasova, Bartovicova, Keene, Bendova, Xiao, Cerna, McLaughlin, Slajsova, Stackpole, Krejcirikova, Moravkova,
Preamble
Hello and welcome back to the Women’s Champions League. Tonight we will focus on Lyon v Slavia Prague as the group stage comes to a close.
Lyon have already been confirmed as quarter-finalists and Slavia Prague are out with Brann taking the other qualifying position from group B. The visitors will want to make sure the scoreline doesn’t reach what the reverse fixture did when Lyon demolished them 9-0.
The French side will want to close the group stage in good fashion and so it could be a long evening for Slavia Prague, but there is a small possibility of a WCL upset.
Before we take a look at the game in more detail, the team news has been announced. Stay tuned for updates.
