31 March 2022
The Champions League dream has ended. Juventus Women were knocked out of Europe following a 3-1 defeat in the second leg of the UWCL quarter final against Olympique Lyonnais. Two goals in two minutes from Ada Hegerberg and Melvine Malard in the closing quarter of an hour of the first half put the French team in charge at half time. A third goal was added by Catarina Macario before Andrea Staskova gave Juve a lifeline in the final five minutes. However, there was to be no second goal for Juventus, which would have taken the match to extra time, as the tie finished 4-3 on aggregate in favour of the five-time winners. A brave performance, which wasn’t enough to continue the Champions League adventure.
HOLDING BACK
Neither team experimented too much with the line-ups from the first leg. Lyon welcomed back Christiane Endler in goal and Ada Hegerberg in attack, while Joe Montemurro went with Barbara Bonansea from kick-off in attack and Martina Lenzini in defence.
Juventus expected a whirlwind start from Lyon from kick off and after just 45 seconds the return of Hegerberg to the hosts’ line-up almost brought instant dividends. The Danish superstar, however, not only dragged her shot wide but was also flagged offside.
However, OL kept up the early pressure and created their first real scoring opportunity on four minutes when Melvine Malard and Catarina Macario combined to release Macario inside the penalty area. Pauline Peyraud-Magnin expertly closed down the angle at the edge of the six-yard box to make an important save. A minute later a cross from the right was inches away from being touched into the net by Hegerberg.
After holding back the initial waves from the Lyon attack, Juventus began to edge forward and a counter-attack led by Bonansea on 23’ set up the first shooting chance for the Bianconere. Bonansea’s pass found Lina Hurtig at the height of the penalty spot, when a last-ditch challenge from Selma Bacha blocked Juve number 17’s effort on goal.
TWO MINUTES, TWO GOALS
After being held at a safe distance by the Juve defence, Lyon burst back into life just after the half-hour mark. From the right, Delphine Cascarino delivered a dangerous cross that flashed across the six-yard box, to be retrieved by Bacha. Her cross from the left was met at the far post by Hegerberg, whose header sailed over Pauline Peyraud-Magnin into the net.
Two minutes later, a deep cross from Lindsey Horan was headed low into the net by Malard. Two goals that arrived out of the blue, but which did not break Juve’s spirit.
HOME PRESSURE
Despite needing a goal to level the tie, Juventus struggled to make ground after the restart. Macario made amends after miss-hitting her shot on 56’ with the home side’s third goal seven minutes later. The US international turned Sara Gama in the area and drove her shot beyond Peyraud-Magnin, who kept her home-town club back with two or three important blocks.
A LIFELINE
Montemurro made all five changes in the closing thirty minutes. Agnese Bonfantini gave the Bianconere some forward momentum, and from a corner kick she earned, fellow sub Andrea Staskova used her ariel strength to power a header past Endler. With five minutes to play, Juventus were still in the contest, the tie was alive once more.
However, the experience of Lyon showed as they denied Juventus any further opportunities
The final whistle signalled the end of the Bianconere’s incredible Champions League adventure.
The players left the OL Stadium with their heads held high after a memorable European campaign.
POST MATCH COMMENTS
Joe Montemurro: "I've so much pride for the girls, and not just for this evening but for the entire tournament. I can only thank them. We have shown that we are a team that is improving and that can compete at the highest levels. We've all grown, the team and the staff. Now we want to come back stronger, and to do that we need to win Serie A, which is now our main focus."
Cristiana Girelli: "We must be proud of the progress we've made this season but I won't hide that there's a sense of disappointment. We knew they would have been aggressive, and perhaps we lacked a little bit of courage. That said, we have achieved something big, and with the plans this club has, we'll see Juventus again in an occasion like this."
OLYMPIQUE LYONNAIS 3-1 JUVENTUS (HT: 2-0) (AGG: 4-3)
SCORERS: 33’ Hegerberg (OL), 35’ Malard (OL), 73’ Macario (OL), 85 ’Staskova (J)
OLYMPIQUE LYONNAIS
Endler, Renard (Cap), Egurrola (46’ Henry), Macario (86’ Gunnarsdottir), Hegerberg, Cascarino, Buchanan, Horan, Mbock Bathy (75’ st Cayman), Bacha, Malard
Subs not used: Morroni, Marozsan, Bouhaddi, Sombath, Laurent, Holmgren, Benyahia, Sylla.
Coach: Bompastor
JUVENTUS
Peyraud-Magnin, Gama (Cap), Cernoia, Rosucci, Girelli (78’ Staskova), Bonansea (69’ Caruso), Boattin (78’ Nilden), Pedersen, Hurtig (60’ Bonfantini), Sembrant, Lenzini (69’ Lundorf)
Subs not used: Aprile, Forcinella, Hyyrynen, Grosso, Zamanian, Panzeri.
Coach: Montemurro
Referee: Hussein
BOOKINGS: 16’ Girelli (J), 44’ Egurrola (OL), 70’ Horan (OL), 80’ Lundorf (J), 90+4’ Gama (J), 90+4’ Hegerberg (OL)
