Tag: Lyon

USWNT star Horan named player of the season finalist in France

The USWNT captain is one of three finalists for the prestigious award

Lindsey Horan has been rewarded for a standout season with Lyon, as the midfielder was named one of three finalists for the Division 1 Féminine player of the season award.

The U.S. women’s national team captain has netted six league goals for Lyon, which sits atop the table with an incredible record of 19 wins and one draw in 20 matches.

Lyon would have already locked up the title in previous seasons, but the French top flight will decide its champion this season in a knockout-style competition between the top four finishers in the league.

PSG, which is currently in second place, is the home to Horan’s two competitors for the individual prize. Tabitha Chawinga has a league-best 18 goals this term, while her teammate Grace Geyoro has chipped in with 11 goals of her own.

Coincidentally, PSG and Lyon are also battling it out for continental honors as the two French teams face off in the UEFA Women’s Champions League semifinal.

Lyon secured a 3-2 home win in the first leg last weekend, with the second leg set for Sunday at Parc des Princes.

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Gaetino anticipates ‘incredible’ challenge from Horan, Lyon in Women’s Champions League

Eva Gaetino highlighted USWNT captain Lindsey Horan as Lyon’s most important player ahead of Saturday’s semifinal

Eva Gaetino hasn’t gone up against Lindsey Horan all that often in her young career, but she’s seen enough of the U.S. women’s national team captain to be impressed.

Ahead of a UEFA Women’s Champions League semifinal between Gaetino’s Paris Saint-Germain and Horan’s Lyon, the 21-year-old highlighted the USWNT veteran as possibly the most important player in the tie.

In quotes published by Goal, Gaetino made it clear that she spent some of her first USWNT camp paying close attention to Horan, and praised the 29-year-old’s all-around game.

“I think even just being in camp with her and being on her team and seeing her strengths, she’s incredible on both sides of the ball,” explained Gaetino. “She’s very dynamic in the attack, very creative, and is also a very good defender. Having to face her higher up the field is exciting for me because I look up to her so much.”

Gaetino ‘excited’ to face Horan, Lyon

Despite going pro before finishing her collegiate eligibility and the big names on the PSG roster, the 5-foot-11 Gaetino has pushed her way into regular starts already. The former Notre Dame captain has started seven games for manager Jocelyn Prêcheur since arriving in the French capital.

That puts her in line to face Lyon in the biggest pair of games in PSG’s season. The Parisians will play the first leg at Lyon’s Groupama Stadium on Saturday, before hosting the second leg at the Parc des Princes on April 28.

Gaetino — who only signed with PSG earlier this year —  indicated that she knows full well that PSG faces a really difficult task against Lyon, a perennial Champions League finalist and a side that has more often than not bested PSG in domestic play.

“They have world-class players and even in my [30] minutes against them previously, just the types of crosses that they were hitting and the runners and the timing of their headers, it’s a huge threat,” said Gaetino, whose professional debut came in Division 1 Féminine play against Lyon in February. “I think that’s going to be a huge challenge and I’m excited for it.”

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Michele Kang pursuing training centers for Washington Spirit, Lyon women

Kang has big plans on both sides of the Atlantic

Michele Kang never seems to slow down.

The Washington Spirit owner has been a regular sight around Audi Field on NWSL gamedays. She has added obligations in Europe, as she finalizes the acquisition of Olympique Lyon’s women’s team, long the gold standard in women’s soccer.

Kang’s plans for a multi-club network in the women’s game are rolling on, which includes moves to build major infrastructure for the Spirit and Lyon

Speaking to a handful of reporters on a sunny day at the Spirit’s current training facility — the club is a tenant at D.C. United’s Inova Performance Center in Leesburg, Va. — Kang said she even had plans to attend the World Cup, only to scuttle them after the U.S. women’s national team’s early exit.

“I was carrying a big suitcase full of winter clothes,” said Kang with a chuckle, as she had made plans to jet from Europe to catch the U.S. women’s national team’s quarterfinal in person.

In between all that, there’s business to tackle. While officials from the Spirit and United both characterize the relationship between the two clubs as harmonious, Washington’s ambitions remain focused on to having its own top-class facility tailored to the need of women athletes.

“I can tell you between myself and my staff, we know every square inch of available land in D.C., Fairfax County, Prince George’s County,” said Kang, gesturing that her list is a long one. “Trying to find 70 acres in this area, even for purchase, is not possible.”

Nonetheless, Kang says the club is “absolutely on plan to build our own state-of-the-art training center that’s designed for women, training women as women, and all the best technology and best capabilities.

“We’re actually starting an innovation center that’s going to focus on, I guess what you call femtech. So, women’s health, understanding women’s bodies, and primary research. We have over a dozen people who are currently working on some of those things, and we’re hiring more. So that innovation lab, with a collaboration with some of the universities, both in England, here, and France, that’s going to be housed there as well.”

Kang characterized the team’s pursuit of a site as “almost there,” adding that the Spirit have kept the door open for one of the most hotly-discussed pieces of property in the entire region.

“Initially, we were very interested in the RFK Stadium [site],” said Kang of United’s former home, which is in the slow process of being demolished. In terms of ease of access, it would be a superb fit for the club. Logistically, it’s a location that poses major challenges involving the District of Columbia’s status as a federal city, differences of opinion over what the site should be used for, and a decades-long buzz among NFL fans hoping to bring the Washington Commanders back within city limits.

“I don’t think we’re gonna get anywhere until the Commanders [have settled on a stadium],” conceded Kang, who acknowledged that the NFL team’s recent sale could slow that process down. “We’re still also talking, and whether we can do something together [with the Commanders], hopefully that’s a possibility.”

Lyon plans include training center, repurposed stadium

Regarding her European interests, Kang said that her move to officially purchase Lyon “hasn’t closed yet,” but that the final steps are modest.

“We are waiting for a lot of approvals from both — in the U.S., NWSL — as well as the French authorities so they’re all moving along,” said Kang. “Everything is moving in the right direction, so we will close. I’ve been involved in some of the rosters and some of those decisions.”

Things are far enough along that Kang has already established plans to move Lyon into its own training center (the women’s side currently has its own section at OL’s larger complex), as well as finding a new home venue.

The rationale is both to control her own club’s space, and because Kang wants these training centers to be customized for women.

“Lyon also, their training facility, all that stuff is absolutely fabulous,” explained Kang. “But they’re all for male players, that are not available for women. The women’s training center is in the back. Trailers, even for Lyon. They have a separate, second-class citizen type of training center.”

Kang said she had been on tours of Premier League facilities to sort out what defines a top-class environment, and will apply that knowledge to the future construction for both the Spirit and Lyon.

“Our goal is to build our own dedicated training center, just for women,” said Kang. “That’s going to look just like the Premier League and Lyon men’s team training centers.”

As for a stadium, the need is clear. Per FBref, a majority of Lyon’s home games in 2022-23 were played with crowds of 1,512 or fewer. Groupama Stadium is a gleaming 59,186-seat venue that works for the Champions League and clashes with Paris Saint-Germain. The remainder are played at a field with one small grandstand for fans located within Lyon’s training facility.

According to Kang, those big matches will continue to be played at Groupama Stadium, but says the club is aiming at a happy medium for their other games.

“We don’t have to build a new stadium,” said Kang. “In Lyon there are a couple of stadiums that are like 10-12,000 [capacity] that used to be rugby stadiums.

“I already met with the mayor of Lyon, the governor equivalent in Lyon métropole, so they’re all very excited. We’re going to try to figure out, instead of building another stadium, we can absolutely [repurpose an existing stadium]. It’s like a 10-12,000 [capacity], it’s probably perfect for regular season.”

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Horan calls out Portland double standard: ‘How do the Timbers have it but the Thorns don’t?’

Horan: training on turf is a “huge deal”

Lindsey Horan says that unequal training conditions in Portland were a part of her reason to pursue a move to Lyon.

Speaking on ESPN show Fútbol Americas, the U.S. women’s national team captain was asked why she sought to make her loan to the French champions permanent, a move that Horan sealed late last month.

Some of her answers weren’t a particular surprise. The 29-year-old cited a more measured, possession-oriented style of play that she has been vocal about preferring, and also brought up the unrivaled glamour of playing in the UEFA Women’s Champions League.

However, per Horan, there was another, more prosaic reason: Lyon trains on grass, while her old club the Portland Thorns are on artificial turf.

“I think for me, also health-wise, physically, I wanted to be in a place where I could be training on grass every single day,” said Horan. “I think that’s a major component that is not seen as much in the NWSL and where certain teams are training, and especially in Portland. I would hate myself if I didn’t say that, because they deserve better as well.”

At Lyon, Horan trains at the Groupama OL Training Center, which features five grass fields. With the Thorns, training is generally held at their home stadium Providence Park on the same FieldTurf playing surface they use on gamedays. While Portland has occasionally trained elsewhere in Oregon, including a few days in Bend during preseason this year, they generally only get sessions on grass when they hit the road.

For Horan, there are two clear issues with this: basic player health, and a double standard at a club that contains both an NWSL side and the Portland Timbers of MLS.

Horan called the daily grind of being on turf a “huge deal,” adding that “it [does] a number on your body.”

“Every team that comes in and plays at Portland, you know that you feel it worse,” added Horan. “You go play 90 minutes there, and it’s so much harder in your body. And I don’t think a lot of people realize it, but it’s just a different kind of impact.”

As for the lack of equal treatment in Portland, Horan said the training situation is a clear manifestation of the issue. “You have to think about the women training there every single day. It’s just, it’s not good. So they need to have a facility for the women as well. How do the Timbers have it but the Thorns don’t?”

While the Thorns train at Providence Park, the Timbers have a dedicated facility in Beaverton that includes a grass field, a kitchen and commissary, a theater-style film room, and the club’s gym and treatment spaces.

The use of artificial turf has long been a pressure point in women’s soccer, with the issue coming to a head in 2015. FIFA approved multiple venues for that year’s World Cup that had turf surfaces, a development that many women’s players said would never happen in an elite men’s tournament. No men’s World Cup match has ever been played on an artificial surface.

The Thorns are in the process of being sold, a major part of the fallout from multiple investigations into misconduct and abuse around the NWSL. However, that sale process — announced in December 2022 — has not come with any public movement.

Watch the full Lindsey Horan interview

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USWNT’s Horan says bonjour to Lyon, au revoir to Portland Thorns

Lyon put up one of the biggest transfer fees in women’s soccer

Lindsey Horan is going to be staying in France for a while yet.

The U.S. women’s national team midfielder has completed a transfer to Lyon, with the French powerhouse stating that they had paid the Portland Thorns a €250,000 transfer fee to seal the deal.

Per Lyon, that fee could rise by €50,000, though the club did not specify what would trigger that extra payment. Horan has signed a contract that runs through June 30, 2026.

“Since Lindsey left on loan for France we have remained in contact and continued the dialogue about her return to Portland,” Thorns FC general manager Karina LeBlanc said in a press release announcing the move. “In our discussions, Lindsey expressed her desire to remain there long term and continue that journey. She has our full support, and we are grateful for all the success she has helped bring to this club.”

“Portland holds such a special place in my heart, I made many incredible memories I will never forget,” said Horan. “I want to thank all those at the Thorns organization who have supported me along the way, my teammates, my coaches, and of course, the best fans in the world. Playing for this club and city and getting to experience gameday at Providence Park brought me great joy during my career. For me, Portland will always be home. Thank you for understanding my goals and dreams in my continuing career.”

Horan’s long-term future at Lyon

Horan’s move doesn’t come as a surprise. In May, Lyon manager Sonia Bompastor stated that she would be carrying on with the club next season while discussing forthcoming changes to her squad.

The 29-year-old joined Lyon on an 18-month loan in January 2022. Since then, she has been an integral player for a team that has gone on to win two Division 1 Féminine championships, the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League, and the 2022-23 Coupe de France.

Horan’s long-term contract points to the more aggressive investment in the team expected under Washington Spirit owner Michele Kang, who has taken over the women’s side of the club after agreeing to a deal with Lyon owner John Textor.

While figures have not always been available for transfers in women’s soccer — an area that has seen rapid growth in recent years — England midfielder Keira Walsh’s €470,000 move to Barcelona is believed to be the biggest single fee paid for a traditional transfer. If the €50,000 bonus is triggered, Horan’s move would be second on that list, just ahead of Pernille Harder’s transfer to Chelsea (which involved a reported €294,000 fee) and Beth England’s switch to Tottenham (€285,000).

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Lyon boss Bompastor: Horan will stay beyond end of Thorns loan

Lyon wants Horan to stick around, which might work for all parties

Don’t expect Lindsey Horan back in the NWSL this year.

That’s the message from Lyon manager Sonia Bompastor, who says that the U.S. women’s national team midfielder will remain with the club despite her loan from the Portland Thorns ending next month.

Bompastor, speaking to Lyon’s in-house broadcasting arm, did not have specific details on whether Lyon would complete a transfer for Horan or simply extend her loan.

When Horan’s loan move to Lyon was announced in January 2022, it came in conjunction with news that she had agreed to a contract with Portland running through 2025. While a longer loan is certainly possible, a transfer for one of the staples of the USWNT would very likely require one of the biggest fees ever paid in women’s soccer.

Bompastor additionally stated that Lyon’s other USWNT player, Catarina Macario, will leave on a free transfer this summer. Per a report in The Athletic, Macario — who on Tuesday confirmed that she will miss the World Cup as she continues to rehab a torn ACL — is set to join Chelsea as a free agent.

Per Bompastor, Macario would be joined by some big names leaving Lyon. Amandine Henry, Signe Bruun, Janice Cayman, and Emma Holmgren were also on her list of players that won’t be re-signed once their contracts end.

Lyon move may work for all parties

Under normal circumstances, a player like Horan would be very difficult to acquire on loan, even for Lyon, and on the surface one would expect Portland to be counting the days before her return.

However, the Thorns have adopted a roster-building strategy where they have developed both the strongest starting midfield in the NWSL, as well as its deepest. In head coach Mike Norris’ preferred 4-3-3 formation, Crystal Dunn, Olivia Moultrie, Raquel Rodríguez, Christine Sinclair, and Hina Sugita are all vying for two midfield spots alongside defensive midfielder Sam Coffey.

Were Horan to come back to Portland ASAP, she would still be expected to have a first-choice role, but it would lead to something of a roster imbalance for a stacked side that won the 2022 NWSL final without her.

Meanwhile, Horan has thrived in France. She has been a regular starter on a team that has won the 2021-22 Champions League, two Division 1 Féminine trophies, and this year’s Coupe de France in the 16 months since Horan’s loan began.

It’s a rare case where all parties have the means and motive to make the move without any side losing out. With Lyon under new ownership in the form of ambitious Washington Spirit owner Michele Kang, the club seems well-positioned to put up the money it would take to buy out Horan’s contract with Portland and make the move permanent.

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Spirit owner Kang set for Lyon Feminin takeover, says outgoing president Aulas

Everyone at Lyon sure is acting like the Washington Spirit owner is taking charge in France

Michele Kang’s move to purchase the women’s half of Lyon appears to be just about complete.

The Washington Spirit owner has been rumored to be finalizing a move to become Lyon Féminin’s majority owner for roughly a month, and it appears that Lyon is ready to drop any pretense about what’s happening.

Lyon hung on to defeat Paris Saint-Germain 2-1 in Saturday’s Coupe de France final, with Ada Hegerberg’s two early goals helping them claim a record 10th French cup.

Following the match, longtime club president Jean-Michel Aulas — who is stepping down after 36 years, forging the most star-studded and successful women’s club on the planet during his tenure — told reporters at the Stade de la Source that he was working with Kang to hand control over without a hitch.

In quotes published by Le Progres, Aulas said that the handover process was in place “to show that while never having given up on the principles, it [must] be that those who arrive with passion and a vision, they had to welcome and put [Kang] in the best conditions.”

Lyon head coach Sonia Bompastor offered further confirmation, telling beIN Sport that Kang is spending time around the club as part of a transition of power.

“Michele Kang will be with us all week, it’s a bit of a handover,” saind Bompastor. “I’m convinced that she has ambitions and wants to continue to invest so that [Lyon] win other titles.”

After the match, club captain and longtime France center back Wendie Renard dedicated the trophy to Aulas, and outright called the Coupe de France victory “the first with the new management Michele Kang and John Textor.”

As if what was coming weren’t clear from Aulas, Bompastor, and Renard, Kang was also on the trophy stand, receiving a winner’s medal with players, coaches, and club staff following the final.

No moves have been formally announced by Kang, Lyon, or John Textor, who owns over 77% of Lyon’s overall shares at the moment. When reached by Pro Soccer Wire on Saturday, the Spirit said the club doesn’t “have anything to share at this time.”

If Aulas and Bompastor are correct, though, Kang may want to consider extending her stay for just over a week. Lyon and PSG will face off again in Division 1 Féminine play on May 21, with the former holding a three-point lead in the standings with two games to play. Another win over PSG would give Lyon their 16th league title; due to a +22 goal difference advantage, a draw would effectively (if not mathematically) seal the deal as well.

Kang’s takeover at Lyon comes with questions in NWSL

Kang’s takeover of Lyon is a potentially complicated situation on both sides of the Atlantic. For Lyon, the women’s side of the club being owned by a separate party may — as Bompastor alluded to — spur further investment than Textor was willing to put in.

With women’s soccer growing in popularity in Europe, Lyon’s perch as the undisputed top dog in UEFA has been challenged by clubs like Barcelona, Chelsea, and Manchester City, not to mention PSG’s emergence as a threat in France. The financial realities are stark: as much as Lyon has pioneered what women’s soccer could be under the umbrella of a larger European club, there’s a major difference between “larger” and the continent’s biggest soccer teams.

Standing pat would very likely see Lyon fall off in terms of financial power in the years to come, as bigger clubs on the men’s side dedicate more of their resources towards their women’s teams. Without someone in a position of power championing Lyon Féminin (as Aulas has done for decades), their days of being the world’s premier club would probably be numbered.

In NWSL, the situation is murkier. Since emerging victorious in a hotly contested battle for control over the club with former owners Steve Baldwin and Bill Lynch, Kang has invested heavily in the Spirit, including a leading-edge high performance and sports science department, improved equipment to aid training, and a larger and more experienced staff on both the soccer and business sides. Multiple sources have told Pro Soccer Wire that Kang spent into the seven-figure range to get out of a deal with MLS side D.C. United that locked the team into playing several games a season at exurban Segra Field, securing Audi Field in the District as their full-time home.

However, Lyon (through the club’s OL Groupe ownership structure) currently serves as majority owner of OL Reign. While Lyon did announce plans to sell the Reign in the near future, there have been no updates since the French side offhandedly acknowledged that intention last month. It’s not clear what would happen on the NWSL side of things if Kang held ownership in both the Spirit and Lyon at the same time.

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Lyon casually announce that OL Reign is for sale

Lyon went off-script to reveal some major NWSL news

There’s never a dull day in women’s soccer.

On Wednesday, a convoluted series of events saw Lyon offhandedly announce that they’ve begun the process to sell OL Reign, their Seattle-based NWSL satellite.

The situation began with a potential bombshell report from L’Equipe, which asserted that Washington Spirit owner Michele Kang has reached a deal with Lyon owner John Textor to purchase a majority stake in Lyon’s women’s team. Per the report, Kang would acquire a 52% share of OL Féminin and assume the club’s annual operating debt, estimated to be just under €12 million.

Pro Soccer Wire reached out to the Washington Spirit on Wednesday about the rumors concerning Kang. In a press conference Thursday, a club spokesperson said the club had no new information to provide at the moment.

Meanwhile, Lyon issued a press release Wednesday afternoon disputing details of the report. In particular, they referred to a claim that club human resources director Vincent Ponsot had met with players to inform them of the sale as “factually and formally impossible” due to most Lyon players being away on international duty while Ponsot himself was said to be traveling abroad.

Surprise! OL Reign are up for sale

After multiple paragraphs pushing back on L’Equipe’s report, Lyon then casually tossed out a huge piece of news: the club is in fact looking to sell OL Reign.

“Some confusion may have arisen following discussions that have taken place in recent days around OL Reign,” read Lyon’s statement. “Indeed, OL Groupe announces that it has given a mandate to sell its NWSL franchise to the investment bank of the Raine Group.”

Equalizer Soccer reported that sources with the Reign were not familiar with a move to find potential buyers, with the Reign later supplying Sounder at Heart with a statement directing questions about the sale back to Lyon.

An NWSL spokesperson provided the Philadelphia Inquirer with a statement saying that the league “is aware” of Lyon’s move to sell OL Reign, and is working with them to complete the move.

The Reign are the third NWSL team out of 12 to find themselves up for sale. At least in this case, the team is for sale in a (relatively speaking) normal, voluntary manner. Raine Group has previously worked with Textor’s Eagle Football Holdings, and most recently became the broker appointed to aid the sale of Manchester United.

That’s a stark contrast to NWSL owners who have been hounded out of the league for poor stewardship at their clubs. Merritt Paulson put the Portland Thorns up for sale in December after a cascade of issues including their handling of Paul Riley’s dismissal and misconduct in their front office and within their training staff. The Chicago Red Stars are also up for sale after pressure from the team’s players, the public, NWSL, and other Red Stars owners saw majority owner Arnim Whisler eventually accept that the team should be sold.

On one hand, the Reign changing hands would make plenty of sense. it’s hard for Lyon to run a top-class club in France, and also a second top-class club an ocean away in the world’s best league. The Reign are one of NWSL’s most decorated teams, and have a history to be proud of. They deserve the kind of investment and focus that generally only comes from a dedicated, undistracted ownership group.

While their move back to Seattle has been a boon, playing at Lumen Field (capacity: 68,740) on a beaten-up NFL turf surface is very much a temporary measure. They don’t control the venue, and are the third major tenant there behind the Seattle Seahawks and Seattle Sounders. After some less-than-stellar past training arrangements, OL Reign relocated to Starfire Sports, a complex in Tukwila that sits roughly 14 miles south of Lumen Field.

That represents progress — training on a new grass surface is a big plus — but it’s again a venue the team does not control. NWSL has entered a new era: the Kansas City Current have built a pristine training facility of their own and have a stadium under construction. Kang told reporters at Audi Field last month that the Spirit are honing in on potential sties for a 70-100 acre training ground.

Lyon selling OL Reign could well represent the moment one of NWSL’s proudest clubs starts catching up in terms of off-field infrastructure. However, the nature of the announcement does open the door to questions over just how serious the vetting process will be. The Reign have been NWSL pioneers in a lot of ways, but may now be something of a guinea pig in terms of how the orderly sale of a club is supposed to work in a more sturdy, well-run league.

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PSG fans put charm offensive on Messi by booing him mercilessly

Perhaps not the best way to convince your star player to sign a new contract

Lionel Messi has a big decision to make at the end of this season.

The Argentine superstar’s contract at PSG is set to expire this summer, and he seems to have three pretty clear options for now: re-sign with the Paris side, complete an emotional return to Barcelona (who may not be able to actually afford him), or take his talents to South Beach and sign with Inter Miami.

Option number one looked like a safe bet a few months ago amid widespread reports that the World Cup Golden Ball winner had verbally agreed to a new deal.

But nothing has yet been signed and this weekend, PSG fans didn’t exactly do their utmost to show Messi he’d be welcomed back for another run at Parc des Princes.

Instead, at least some sections of the home support booed Messi throughout Sunday’s dismal 1-0 loss to Lyon.

Messi was not at his best in the game against Lyon, nor, more importantly, over a two-leg defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League last 16.

But for head coach Christophe Galtier, who admitted Messi wasn’t at his best against Lyon, those whistles were still harsh.

“Leo Messi tried very hard,” Galtier said. “It is not just about Messi and Kylian Mbappé. There were some technical mistakes in his [Messi’s] link-up play, but I think the whistles are hard to listen to because Leo Messi gives so much. He has got goals and assists in 2023, but it is also down to his teammates in terms of doing more to create more danger in the opposition penalty box.”

Asked if he had considered benching Messi, Galtier added: “When it is a difficult period and you need to turn a situation around and score goals, Leo Messi is a decisive player who is capable of coming up with a moment of magic that can be decisive for scoring goals. He has scored goals in 2023, he has got assists. I have never thought about taking him off or not playing him. He is an important player in our attacking lineup.”

Even after four scoreless games in a row, Messi has 18 goals and 17 assists in all competitions this season.

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Chelsea fends off Lyon as UWCL quarterfinal goes into Twilight Zone

The UWCL drama levels, and the strangeness, were extremely high

Chelsea and Lyon played out a UEFA Women’s Champions League classic on Thursday, with the finish containing equal parts weirdness and drama

The Blues emerged victorious on penalties despite losing 2-1 on the night, with Maren Mjelde’s spot kick in the eighth minute of stoppage time leveling the aggregate scoreline at 2-2 with the game’s final touch.

Ann-Katrin Berger then emerged as the hero, saving two spot kicks to end Lyon’s reign as the champions of Europe.

Chelsea won the first leg 1-0 in France, setting up an extremely tense second leg. Both teams pursued the opening goal, and between that exuberance, typically rainy London conditions, and desperation from both teams to win, a true battle played out at Stamford Bridge.

Berger stopped an early Delphine Cascarino chance (with Lindsey Horan inches away from poking the rebound home), only for Christiane Endler to respond by denying a Sam Kerr one-on-one later in the first half.

The tension kept going up, and the game got progressively more strange. Melanie Leupolz had to leave the match a bloody mess after she was struck in the face by Danielle van de Donk’s trailing hand. A short-handed Chelsea would end up withdrawing their entire central midfield for a range of reasons, while a typically stacked Lyon was able to turn to the likes of Ada Hegerberg and Dzsenifer Marozsán off the bench.

Finally a goal came, and for Lyon it was symbolic of how scrappy they had to be to gain an edge over Chelsea on the night. A recycled set piece was chested down by Wendie Renard to Horan, who had just enough speed to round Jess Charles and hit a blind cross along the endline.

Vanessa Gilles had stayed forward, and did just barely enough to reach a foot out before Magdalena Eriksson could arrive, somehow prodding the ball towards goal, off Berger’s upper arm, and (by mere inches) over the line.

Through sheer willpower, Lyon appeared to have gained an edge as Chelsea’s energy levels flagged. Extra time largely saw the visitors look more potent, and if anything a goal for the defending champions felt inevitable.

In the 110th minute, the pressure finally told. Vicki Bècho’s clever flick gave Lyon width, and Hegerberg’s cross from the right floated just out of Eriksson’s reach. With the rest of the Chelsea defense too stagnant, Sara Däbritz’s bobbling finish — while far from convincing — was just enough to get past Berger.

Chelsea began the predictable “last chance saloon” approach, hoofing it long and hoping for the best. Lyon, with a team stocked with strong headers and seeming to have more energy, looked solid.

However, with essentially the last play of the match, the French giants couldn’t quite clear Berger’s free kick from midfield. Wendie Renard won the first header, but could only glance the ball away from the goalmouth. Kerr tried a cross, but Bècho beat multiple Chelsea players to the ball.

Chelsea’s Lauren James saw that header fall to her, and for a split-second, the option to shoot was open. James took another touch though, then tried to get to the endline. Bècho followed, and James hit the deck.

Initially, referee Ivana Martinčić had no interest in giving a penalty, but a two-minute VAR check (all coming after the two minutes of stoppage time that had initially been announced) centered on whether Bècho had clipped James, or if James had clipped her own feet.

At long last, Martinčić gave the penalty, but even that wasn’t enough drama for this match. It took over a minute from that point for Mjelde to have the ball on the spot, but there were still two more minutes to wait. The reason? Martinčić wanted every player from both teams, other than Mjelde and Endler, to clear out of the area. It seemed like this was a literal last kick.

More than three minutes after knowing she’d have to take a stoppage-time penalty in a UWCL quarterfinal against mighty Lyon, and with manager Emma Hayes literally unable to look, Mjelde held her nerve, powering the equalizer past one of the world’s best goalkeepers.

Chelsea shot first in the tiebreaker, and Mjelde — just four minutes in real time from when she’d beaten Endler the first time — was among the successful shots from both teams. However, Berger flew to her left to deny Renard in the third round, giving Chelsea the edge.

It lasted just moments. On the very next shot, Endler dove to her right to slap James’ penalty away, and Däbritz would bring Lyon back to even terms heading into the final round.

Jess Carter made no mistake for Chelsea, but with the game on the line, Berger read Horan’s intentions all the way, tipping the U.S. women’s national team star’s effort away.

Chelsea, despite looking like they’d run out of gas before crossing the finish line, were somehow through.

Having come through extraordinary drama, Chelsea joins Barcelona, Arsenal, and Wolfsburg — who knocked out France’s other big power, Paris Saint-Germain, earlier on Thursday — in the semifinal draw.

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