On Thursday, March 30th, 2023, Chelsea Women’s Football Club and Olympique Lyonnais Feminin played a thrilling quarterfinals match in the UEFA Women’s Champions League 2022-23 season. The match took place at the Kingsmeadow Stadium, London, and ended in a 2-2 aggregate scoreline, forcing the game into a penalty shootout, where Chelsea emerged as the winner by 4-3.
The match was a part of the second round of the competition, where both teams had progressed after finishing first in their respective groups. Lyon, the defending champions of the competition, were the favorites coming into the match, having won the title seven times in the last ten years. However, Chelsea had taken the lead in the first leg, played in Lyon, by a solitary goal scored by Fran Kirby, giving them an away goal advantage going into the second leg.
Lyon started the second leg in a dominant fashion, with Vanina Correa, the Chelsea goalkeeper, making multiple crucial saves to keep the scoreline level. However, Lyon’s persistence paid off in the 58th minute when their forward Valerie Gilles scored a crucial away goal, which put them in a strong position to progress. They doubled their lead in the 69th minute through Amandine Henry’s goal, leaving Chelsea needing two goals to progress.
The hosts refused to give up and continued to attack. Their efforts paid off in the 81st minute when they were awarded a penalty after Lyon’s goalkeeper, Sarah Bouhaddi, fouled Kirby in the box. Kirby converted the penalty, setting up a nervy finish to the match. With the match ending in a 2-2 aggregate scoreline, the game went into a penalty shootout, where Chelsea held their nerve to win 4-3 and progress to the semifinals.
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In conclusion, the quarterfinal match between Chelsea and Lyon in the UEFA Women’s Champions League 2022-23 season was a thrilling encounter that had everything. Lyon, the favorites, had to face defeat to Chelsea, who showed incredible resilience to overcome the defending champions and progress to the semifinals of the competition.
