Chelsea To Play Barcelona In Women’s Champions League Final News

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Chelsea To Play Barcelona In Women’s Champions League Final

By Daily Sports on May 2, 2021

Pernille Harder scored a key late goal and Fran Kirby netted twice as Chelsea overturned a 2-1 first-leg deficit with a 4-1 victory over Bayern Munich on Sunday to set up a Women’s Champions League final against Barcelona.

England international Kirby gave Chelsea the lead on 11 minutes at Kingsmeadow, finishing off a move she began inside her own half after combining smartly with Australia forward Sam Kerr.

Sarah Zadrazil equalised with a thunderous, dipping shot from distance that clipped the underside of the bar on its way in as Bayern regained the upper hand in the tie.

Chelsea players celebrate their fourth goal during the UEFA Women’s Champions League semi-final second leg football match between Chelsea and Bayern Munich, at Kingsmeadow Stadium in south west London on May 2, 2021. Adrian DENNIS / AFP

Ji So-yun gave Chelsea a 2-1 advantage just before half-time, steering low into the corner past an unsighted Laura Benkarth after smacking her initial free-kick against the wall.

Danish forward Harder, who joined Chelsea at the start of the season for a reported world-record transfer fee, grabbed the decisive goal on 84 minutes as she glanced in a header from Jessica Carter’s free-kick.

Harder was a Champions League runner-up twice in the past three seasons with Wolfsburg.

Kirby made sure of Chelsea’s place in the May 16 final in Gothenburg as she rolled into an empty net with the final kick of the game to complete a 5-3 win on aggregate.

Chelsea’s Danish forward Pernille Harder (L) celebrates with teammates after scoring their third goal during the UEFA Women’s Champions League semi-final second leg football match between Chelsea and Bayern Munich, at Kingsmeadow Stadium in southwest London on May 2, 2021.
Adrian DENNIS / AFP

The Blues become just the second English club to reach the biggest match in European women’s club football after Arsenal, who won the competition in 2007.

It will be the first Champions League final without a French team since 2014 after Paris Saint-Germain were knocked out by Barcelona 3-2 on aggregate.

Lieke Martens scored twice as Barcelona advanced to a second final in three years with a 2-1 victory over PSG in the second leg of their semi-final in Spain.

After a 1-1 draw in France last weekend, Dutch winger Martens put Barcelona in front on eight minutes at the Johan Cruyff Stadium with a superb curling strike.

She then ghosted in at the far post to double Barcelona’s advantage on the half-hour, tapping in a cross from Caroline Graham Hansen.

PSG, who ended Lyon’s five-year reign in the quarter-finals, soon pulled a goal back when Marie-Antoinette Katoto prodded in after a goalmouth scramble from a corner.

Jenni Hermoso, the competition’s top scorer this season, and Marta Torrejon both hit the woodwork for 2019 runners-up Barcelona in the second half as the Spaniards held on to qualify. (AFP)

•PHOTO: Chelsea’s South Korean midfielder Ji So-yun leaps into the arms of Chelsea’s English defender Millie Bright as Chelsea players celebrate on the pitch after the UEFA Women’s Champions League semi-final second leg football match between Chelsea and Bayern Munich, at Kingsmeadow Stadium in southwest London on May 2, 2021. Adrian DENNIS / AFP

Source Daily Sports

Posted May 2, 2021