Women’s Champions League adventure ends in Lyon

There was no miracle on the night for Juventus Women, who knew they would need one to overturn a first-leg deficit against holders Olympique Lyon on their own turf, given the French side ran out 3-2 winners in Turin.

The Bianconere head out of the Women’s Champions League with their heads held high at the end of the most difficult possible tie that the competition could have thrown up, having taken another step forward in terms of development.

THE MATCH

The French side showed from the first whistle that they had no intention of sitting on their first-leg lead and did not want to take any risks. That can be considered a compliment for Rita Guarino’s charges, who earned their opponents’ respect a week ago.

Lyon took the lead in the 21st minute when Dzsenifer Marozsan dispossessed Linda Sembrant and put the ball past Doris Bacic, who was deputising for Laura Giuliani after she suffered a hand injury. The goal came after a dominant start to the game by Jean-Luc Vasseur’s side, despite Juve carving out a couple of openings for Cristiana Girelli and Lina Hurtig that the forwards were unable to convert.

Nikita Parris and Amel Majri were a constant threat and spurned chances to extend the hosts’ lead, while Hurtig caused panic in the Lyon box with a dangerous cross towards the end of the first half.

The match followed a similar path after the interval, with Barbara Bonansea releasing Girelli, whose powerful left-footed shot was blocked on the hour mark. Lyon dominated the remainder of the contest and went close to extending their lead in the 80th minute when Tuija Hyyrynen had to clear the ball off the line.

The goals did come, however, in the closing stages when substitute Melvine Malard headed past Bacic in the 87th minute and Janice Cayman added gloss to the scoreline three minutes later with a powerful strike.

The final score was harsh on Guarino’s players, who nonetheless bow out of the competition with their heads held high.

GUARINO REACTION

“We did really well in the first leg, playing to the best of our ability. We made too many mistakes today and if you give Lyon space and don't pay attention to every little detail, they punish you. If you give them the slightest chance, they have the quality to make the most of it.

“These two games have shown that they're still ahead of us but if we keep working hard as we have been, with the right mentality and with time, we can reach that sort of level and become more and more competitive.

“We've made so much progress in Italy. We know we're behind other countries but we're working to close the gap quickly. Turning professional will be key, not just in terms of rights but also so that we can offer women footballers better development opportunities.”

UEFA Women’s Champions League – Round of 32 – Second Leg
Groupama Stadium – Lione (Francia)

Olympique Lyonnais-Juventus 3-0 

Marcatori: 21’ pt Marozsan (O); 43’ st Malard (O); 45’ st Cayman (O)

Olympique Lyonnais: Bouhaddi (Cap), Bacha (45’ st Becho), Kumagai, Henry, Majri (45’ st Julini), Gunnarsdottir, Marozsan (45’ st Taylor), Carpenter, Parris (18’ st Malard), Cascarino (26’ st Cayman), Buchanan. A disposizione: Gallardo, Talaslahti, Renard, Revelli, Maoulida, Sombath. Allenatore: Jean Luc Vasseur 

Juventus: Bacic, Hyyrynen, Gama (Cap) (13’ st Souza Alves), Galli (31’ st Zamanian), Cernoia, Girelli (1’ st Bonansea), Boattin, Hurtig (31’ st Staskova), Caruso, Salvai, Sembrant. A disposizione: Tasselli, Ippolito, Rosucci, Lundorf, Caiazzo, Giai, Giordano, Berti. Allenatrice: Rita Guarino

Ammonite: 2’ pt Kumagai (O), 12’ pt Henry (O), 28’ pt Marozsan (O)

Prossimo impegno:
Juventus - Roma
Semifinale di Supercoppa Femminile.
Mercoledì 6 gennaio – ore 12:30
Stadio Comunale di Chiavari”, Via Aldo Gastaldi, 22 - Chiavari (GE)