Arsenal took a 2-1 lead into the second leg of their Women’s Champions League semi-final against OL Lyonnes at 2pm BST on Saturday, with the London club unchanged from the first match and Lyon making two changes. Melchie Dumornay and Selma Bacha were both handed starts as Lyon tried to overturn a 1-2 aggregate deficit after last weekend’s defeat at the Emirates.
Arsenal arrived in France in sharp form after beating Leicester 7-0 in midweek, while Lyon came in carrying the weight of a club that has won eight Champions League trophies. The matchup also brought back a familiar memory for Arsenal: they had already beaten Lyon 4-1 at the Groupama Stadium in last season’s semi-final second leg before going on to win the final in Lisbon.
For Lyon, now rebranded as OL Lyonnes since Michele Kang’s overhaul last year, the task was simple enough to state and hard enough to complete. They remained unbeaten in the French top division and had strengthened further last summer with the arrivals of Marie-Antoinette Katoto and Lily Yohannes, along with the hiring of Giráldez, but Arsenal’s first-leg win meant they needed to find a way through a side that has already shown it can punish them in this stadium.
That was the tension behind the team sheets: Arsenal stayed with what had worked, and Lyon reached for two changes rather than a full reset. In a tie this tight, that is often the clearest sign of belief or desperation, depending on which dressing room you are standing in. Arsenal knew a compact evening could send them back toward another final. Lyon knew anything less than urgency would leave them chasing a club that has already beaten them here before.
The result of the first leg gave Arsenal the edge, but the second leg asked the harder question. Lyon have the history, the home ground and the squad to turn a semi-final around. Arsenal have the lead, the confidence from their 7-0 win over Leicester, and the recent proof that Lyon can be beaten again. The side that managed the moment better in Saturday’s second leg was the one that moved closer to Lisbon.