Chelsea’s mission to finally win the Women’s Champions League title after three consecutive semi-final defeats got off to a tough start with a 1-1 draw with Dutch club Twente on Wednesday.
German great Alexandra Popp was key to two-time champions Wolfsburg’s 4-0 victory over Paris Saint-Germain, but squandered a series of good scoring chances in the second half.
Both Madrid clubs scored six goals in a big win, capping off the opening week of competition in the newly expanded league phase format with 18 teams.
Real Madrid beat Roma 6-2 at home, while Atlético Madrid won 6-0 against St. Polten, taking a three-goal lead by the 22nd minute.
Manchester United became the first team to take a point from Chelsea in the English league this season last Friday, beating Valerenga 1-0 at home thanks to captain Maya Le Tissier’s penalty in the 31st minute.
Everything changes for Chelsea
Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastre made eight changes to her starting XI on Wednesday as the six-time English champions scored a stunning goal against the Dutch league leaders.
Twente captain Danik van Ginkel fired a curling shot from the edge of the penalty area in the 63rd minute following an attack from Gilles Rode on the left. The shot went over the dive of Swiss goalkeeper Livia Penn, who started in place of England standout Hannah Hampton.
Chelsea equalized in the 71st minute with a penalty awarded to French winger Sandy Baltimore for an obvious foul.
Coach Bompasta then introduced star forward Sam Kerr and 16-year-old defender Chloe Serwie to aim for a second goal. Sawee came close with a rising shot.
Chelsea have yet to be crowned European champions, losing to Barcelona in the semi-finals for the last three seasons. Chelsea also lost to Barcelona in the 2021 final.
top pop
At 34 years old, Alexandra Popp is still a strong player at Volsburg, helping the club win back-to-back Champions League titles in 2013 and 2014.
Wolfsburg took the lead in the seventh inning against PSG when Pop pressured defender Jackie Groenen near the corner and the ball was pushed into the net for an own goal.
In the 42nd minute, Pop won the ball from PSG inside the penalty area and Ella Pedemors came forward and smashed a low shot into the goal.
Pop scored with a diving header in the 90th minute. Seawolves captain Janina Mingue added a penalty in stoppage time by beating PSG goalkeeper Mary Earps.
Alba Redondo and Caroline Weir each scored twice for Spain, and after Roma fought back with two equalizers in the first half, Real Madrid dominated in the second half.
in Tuesday’s opening match against Barcelona With a spectacular performance, they defeated Bayern Munich 7-1.
The league phase ends in December. Teams ranked 1st through 4th in the standings will advance directly to the quarterfinals. Players ranked 5th through 12th will advance to the knockout playoff round. The bottom 6 teams will be eliminated.
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