BERLIN (AP) — Trophy holders Arsenal will face eight-time champions Lyon while Barcelona aims to reach the Women’s Champions League final for the sixth straight year.
Bayern Munich are the only semi-finalists not to have played in the final, but it seems only a matter of time before the German powerhouse makes it to the final. 4th consecutive Bundesliga victory on Wednesday after a near-perfect domestic campaign.
Bayern host Barcelona in the first leg of the semi-final on Saturday, looking for revenge after the Catalan club won 7-1 in their last league encounter.
Here are the details for this weekend’s semi-final first leg:
Bayern vs Barcelona on Saturday
Barcelona are aiming to win their fourth title after losing to Arsenal in the final last year. Bayern’s form looks bleak, having lost just one competitive match this season, with their only league defeat coming against Real Sociedad in November. Barcelona advanced to the semi-finals with a 12-2 aggregate victory over arch-rivals Real Madrid, and defeated Madrid 3-0 away in the quarter-finals.
Barcelona have scored 32 goals in total, 10 more than any other team, but have conceded the least with 5. Eva Pajor scored 7 points and Alexia Putelas added 7 points with 5 points.
Barcelona have also won two of their last 19 matches in this competition.
Arsenal vs Lyon on Sunday
This is a repeat of last year’s semi-final and a reunion of the teams who faced each other in the opening game, which Lyon won 2-1 in London.
The French champions have won each of their past five visits.
Last season, after losing the first leg 2-1, Arsenal bounced back with a 4-1 away win against Lyon in the second leg of the semi-final.
Lyon’s Melqui Dumornay and Arsenal’s Mariona Caldenti scored with both feet in this match.
Lyon lost 1-0 to Wolfsburg in the quarterfinals, their first loss of the season. They bounced back in the second leg and won 4-0 in extra time.
Arsenal’s form is mixed. They beat Chelsea 3-2 on aggregate but lost 1-0 in the second leg, and lost 2-0 at home to Brighton & Hove Albion in the FA Cup last weekend.
The return match will be held in May. The final will be held in Oslo on May 23rd.
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