Les Parisiennes fall one step short of the final | OneFootball

Despite their efforts, the Paris Saint-Germain Women's team were beaten by Lyon in the second leg of the UEFA Women's Champions League semi-final, marking the end of their European journey (1-2). A look back at the match.

A great clash of French football, a European rendezvous, an electric rivalry between two galaxies driven by their ambitions... Once again, Paris Saint-Germain crossed paths with Olympique Lyonnais on the road to the stars. The spectacle promised to be magnificent this Sunday afternoon. In a Parc des Princes where more than 30,000 fans of the club from the capital came to support Les Parisiennes, they hosted the eight-time European champions for a tense second leg of the Champions League semi-finals. All the ingredients were there for history to be written... Against their nemesis, Les Parisiennes relied on their core players to try to turn the tide and reach the final... Jocelyn Prêcheur had indeed concocted a line-up brimming with quality, led by a fiery attack featuring Chaqwinga, Katoto and Baltimore.

It was to be expected and the start of the match quickly set the tone: we would have to stand up to all the adverse winds... Right from the start, the Lyon players gave our defence a hard time, posing a threat to our backline. A threat that was quickly pounced upon as it took only two short minutes for Salma Bacha to open the scoring (0-1, 3'). But that didn't demoralise our Rouge et Bleu , determined, no matter the scenario, to show the determination needed in big matches.

'So, after the first fifteen minutes of resisting the visitors' attacks, our Parisiennes stepped up, showing a relentless desire to seize control of the ball. And when the Lyon players sought to regain control of the game, our heroines also had to step up, from Baltimore's fierce tackles to Geyoro's recoveries, to the invaluable clearances by Gaetino and De Almeida, relentless in defence, while Constance Picaud kept her team in the game. What a fierce battle it was... It took a lot of personality and all you had to do was see the bursts forward by our Rouge et Bleu to gauge their desire to turn the tie around. A surge in intensity that quickly bore fruit.

It was the relentless Tabita Chawinga, Paris Saint-Germain's top scorer this season, who perfectly capitalised on Marie-Antoinette Katoto's assist to beat Endler and equalise (1-1, 41')! A perfect goal to allow the stadium to roar just before half-time!

One thing is certain, our Parisiennes had no reason to blush in front of Lyon, as they managed to dominate the possession throughout the first half (62% possession at half-time)...

True to their principles, our Parisians obviously had no intention of easing off after returning from the dressing room. The nature of the fixture didn't allow for it. Nor did the two goals that were still needed to secure qualification. So they returned for the second half with the same intentions. A special mention for Constance Picaud, who spread her wings to repel Lyon's attempts from Majri and Dumornay (64', 65').

But that was without counting on the experience of Sonia Bompastor's players, who took advantage of another strong spell to regain the lead, courtesy of Dumornay, less than ten minutes before the end of the match (1-2, 81').

Unfortunately, despite all their efforts, their tenacity, and the goals scored against Lyon in both the first and second legs, luck favoured the rivals, and it became too difficult this Sunday to make up for the deficit... The players from the capital therefore exit the competition with their heads held high, falling just short of the Champions League final. Now, the focus shifts to the Paris Saint-Germain's next two objectives: a Coupe de France final on the horizon and a D1 Arkema play-off that may offer hope for revenge...

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