Chelsea are gearing up for one of the most significant games in the club’s history, with European champions Barcelona set to visit Stamford Bridge in the semi-finals of the UEFA Women’s Champions League (UWCL) this weekend.
The Blues secured an historic 1-0 victory in the first leg at the Estadi Olímpic on Saturday thanks to a super strike from captain Erin Cuthbert. Barcelona were awarded a penalty in the second half for handball by Kadeisha Buchanan but the decision was overturned by VAR after Salma Paralluelo was found to be offside in the build-up.
It was Barcelona’s first home defeat since February 2019 and the first time they have failed to score in a game since April 2022. But, while the magnitude of the result is impossible to refute, there is a sense that is only a job half-done for Chelsea, with the west Londoners braced for a big response when the teams meet in SW6 on Saturday afternoon.
“I’m not here to break records, no disrespect to Barcelona, but that’s not a trophy for me,” Hayes said after the game. “We’re here to compete for the Champions League and we’re at half-time against the best team in the world, who didn’t have their best game today.”
Should the Blues progress to the final, they will face either Lyon or Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in a bid to win the club’s first ever UWCL title. It would also represent Hayes’ last chance to win the competition as Chelsea manager before she departs to become head coach of the US Women’s national team at the end of the season.
With the club on the cusp of making history, football.london takes a look back at some of Chelsea’s near-misses in the UWCL.
2017/18: A first semi-final
After winning a first Women’s Super League (WSL) title in 2015, there was a sense that it was only a matter of time before Chelsea made the next step. And so it proved as, in the 2017/18 season, the Blues made it to the club’s first ever UWCL semi-final.
Having failed to progress beyond the Round of 16 in previous years, Hayes’ side impressed by beating Bayern Munich, FC Rosengård and French side Montpellier to reach the last four. It was there Chelsea came up against German giants VfL Wolfsburg, who had dumped them out of the competition in the two previous seasons.
Unfortunately for the Blues, it was a case of same old story, with Wolfsburg winning the tie 5-1 on aggregate. Although the gulf in quality between the two teams was clear, the game showed Chelsea exactly what was required to excel in Europe and only served to make Hayes and co. hungry for more success.
2022/23: Always the bridesmaid
Always the bridesmaid in Europe, it looked as if Chelsea’s luck might be about to change when they reached the semi-finals of the competition last term. After going unbeaten in a tough group featuring PSG, Real Madrid and Albanian side KFF Vllaznia, the Blues were drawn against holders and eight-time winners Lyon in the quarter-finals.
The French side had knocked Chelsea out in the semi-finals in 2019 and so the Blues travelled to the Parc Olympique Lyonnais looking to enact revenge on Sonia Bompastor’s side. In the first leg, they did just that, winning 1-0 in France thanks to a sublime finish from Guro Reiten.
“It’s crucial as this win is at the home of the champions of Europe,” Hayes said after that game. “They’ve won it so many times, so for us to take a 1-0 lead heading into the home game, I can’t ask for any more. I am absolutely delighted.”
It was almost heartbreak for the Blues in the second leg as Vanessa Gilles restored parity in the tie at Stamford Bridge before Sara Dabritz put Lyon ahead in extra-time. But Maren Mjelde’s 128th-minute spot-kick saw the game go to a shootout.
Lyon’s Wendie Renard and Chelsea’s Lauren James both saw their penalties kept out but Ann-Katrin Berger made the decisive save from Lindsey Horan to send the Blues through and set up a tie with Barcelona. And the Liga F champions made the perfect start to the tie, with Caroline Graham Hansen scoring inside four minutes in west London.
Chelsea battled valiantly in the second leg at the Camp Nou, with Reiten levelling the game after Graham Hansen struck again in Catalonia, but they were unable to force extra-time. “Today, I think the better team lost,” Hayes said after the game.
It was a valid statement from the Chelsea boss but ultimately the Blues had failed to take their chances and had paid the price.
READ MORE:Chelsea poised to deliver the unthinkable for Emma Hayes as Champions League progress clear
READ MORE: Emma Hayes disappointed despite Chelsea Women’s huge Champions League win over Barcelona
2020/21: Collapse in Gothenburg
Last season was not the first time Chelsea had seen their Champions League dream crushed by Barcelona. The two sides met in the final in 2021, with the Catalans romping to a 4-0 win in Gothenburg.
After winning a second consecutive WSL title and the Continental League Cup that season, it was hoped that the Blues could transfer their stellar domestic form to the European stage. Hayes’ side had beat Benfica, Atletico Madrid, Wolfsburg and Bayern Munch to reach their first ever UWCL final.
But it was a nightmare start in Sweden as Chelsea fell behind to a Melanie Leupolz own goal after just 33 seconds. The Blues struggled to recover and found themselves 4-0 down within 36 minutes.
They managed to shut up shop in the second half but it was too little too late for the west Londoners, who still looked like they had some way to go before lifting the continent’s biggest prize.
“It’s been a wonderful season for us, today was difficult because the game was over before it began and that’s what is so difficult to reflect on,” Hayes told BT Sport at the time. “Congratulations to Barcelona, they’re worthy winners, deserving of their title and it’s something we will learn from because this is the next step up.”
Indeed, if there was ever a time to show that learning it is this weekend, when Jonatan Giraldez’s side will travel to Stamford Bridge with a point to prove. If Chelsea manage to see the job through, it will feel, in the eyes of many, that they have an incredible chance of giving Hayes her fairytale ending.
The second leg will be played on Saturday, April 27 at Stamford Bridge which you can watch live on DAZN.
You can watch back the first leg of Lyon vs Paris Saint-Germain in the other semi-final on DAZN, here.
