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OL Lyonnes v Arsenal: Women’s Champions League semi-final, second leg – live | Women’s Champions League
Key events
29 min: Caldentey is crowded out in midfield as Arsenal struggle to keep the ball.
26 min: Arsenal finally look alive as Russo plays in Blackstenius … but Renards delivers a late, desperate, sliding interception.
24 min: It’s been an eventful opening quarter. The dangerous Dumornay wriggles inside the area to get a shot off but a deflection takes out any venom.
Tom Garry
The OL Lyonnes supporters are bouncing up and down to the beat of the drum, full of belief, full of noise. This crowd is loving what they’re seeing so far. The French side are well on top and causing Arsenal all sorts of problems.
GOAL! OL Lyonnes 1-0 Arsenal (agg: 2-2) – Renard pen 21
Renard goes to the right again, and Van Domselaar guesses incorrectly.
The penalty will be retaken!
Van Domselaar moved to her left to deny Renard … but we’re going to have a retake! The keeper was off the line before the ball was kicked. Oh, the drama. I love it.
Van Domselaar saves!
Brilliant from the Arsenal keeper.
Penalty to Lyonnes!
The referee points to the spot. Dumornay was a touch too quick for Wubben-Moy, the centre-half catching the Haiti international’s right boot.
17 min: The ref’s going to the monitor. Not looking good for Arsenal.
16 min: Dumornay goes down inside the area after Wubben-Moy goes in for a challenge … time for VAR to have a look.
14 min: Arsenal are camped inside their own half as Lyon work it round. Fox just about nicks the ball after battling with Brand inside the Arsenal box.
13 min: The scoreline is in Arsenal’s favour but Lyon have taken the opening exchanges here.
On first glance it’s not entirely clear why that’s not been given – VAR has a look and it’s deemed offside, with Lyon’s Engen stood right by Van Domselaar, getting in the way of the keeper. Tough beat for Lyon.
DISALLOWED GOAL!
It’s Lyon’s turn for a corner, with Bacha delivering to the far post, and Heaps heads in … but it’s not been given.
5 min: Blackstenius wins a corner for Arsenal … McCabe delivers to the far post, Wubben-Moy heads it back into the middle and Little’s shot is blocked! Though the whistle goes for a foul by Arsenal. Never mind.
4 min: Lyon get a good look at the ball. Arsenal were cut open a little too easily with that chance for Hegerberg a couple minutes ago.
2 min: Huge chance. Lyon work it nicely from left to right before the cross comes in for Hegerberg, there to volley it in from close range. But she fails to make correct contact … though replays show she was offside.
1 min: Arsenal get us going, driving down the right flank.
Peeeeep!
Here we go. Who’s off to Oslo?
Zach Neeley writes in:
Russo, Mariona, Foord, Blackstenius, Smith all on the field. Slegers seems to have found her best team by filling it with attacking players. Also a tribute to how much Kim Little can still cover.
The players leave the tunnel, the legendary Wendie Renard leading out Lyonnes.
Tom Garry
Thousands of white, red and blue flags were left on the seats for the Ol Lyonnes supporters and they are waving their aloft now as their team jog off the pitch at the end of their warmup. The atmosphere is building nicely. There are also around 600 Arsenal fans high the stand opposite us, making themselves heard.
Gordon in Aberdeen writes in:
To my mind, Arsenal’s success in Europe has been largely based on analysis of the opposition, and stopping them playing by marking, defensive positional play, and blocking passing lanes. Lyonnes need to spring a tactical surprise on Arsenal today in order to win this tie. Starting Dumornay is a step towards that – but persisting with Hegerberg, so ineffectual in the first leg v Arsenal and both QF games v Wolfsburg, is inexplicable. Katoto is the current starting striker for France, and would be a much greater threat to the Arsenal defence.
A reminder of how that first leg went:
As Alessia Russo prepares for another Champions League semi-final, there’s a trophy named after her that’s up for grabs.
Here’s Tom Garry’s preview.
Michele Kang rebranded the club from Lyon to OL Lyonnes last year and spent significantly last summer, adding star names such as the France striker Marie-Antoinette Katoto and Lily Yohannes, as well as hiring Giráldez, a Champions League-winning head coach. They are unbeaten in the French top division so their toughest challenge comes in Europe and, to a degree, it feels as if their season has been gearing up for Saturday’s showdown.
Arsenal are unchanged from the first leg. If it ain’t broke … Lyon make two tweaks, with Melchie Dumornay and Selma Bacha starting.
The teams
OL Lyonnes: Endler, Lawrence, Renard, Engen, Bacha, Heaps, Dumornay, Yohannes, Diani, Hegerberg, Brand
Subs: Belhadj, Marchal, Becho, Shrader, Katoto, Egurrola, Sombath, Svava, Tarciane, Rafalski, Ouazar, Olivier
Arsenal: Van Domselaar, Fox, Williamson, Wubben-Moy, McCabe, Russo, Little, Mariona, Foord, Blackstenius, Smith
Subs: Votikova, Borbe, Laia Codina, Maanum, Kelly, Pelova, Hinds, Holmberg, Dixon
Preamble
Wait a second … I’ve seen this one before. It finished 2-1 at the Emirates in the first leg of Arsenal’s Champions League semi-final with Lyon last year, too. That time round it was the French side who had the one-goal cushion heading into the second leg, but Renée Slegers’ team triumphed 4-1 at the Groupama Stadium before making history in Lisbon.
What now for the defending champions? They have the advantage this time after Olivia Smith’s winner last weekend, and a 7-0 midweek victory against Leicester added to the joy. But Lyonnes carry continental prestige, eight Champions League trophies in the cabinet, with Melchie Dumornay expected to return after missing out in the first leg. She’s already delivered against Arsenal this season. We get going at 2pm BST.
The family of Shaun Burton, say they are “devastated” by the loss.
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Key events
In the opening half an hour against Cape Verde, Mikel Oyarzabal, the centre-forward, did not get a single touch.
Kyle Green gets in touch: “Your highlighting of Lalas and his absurdity is something that has prevented me from wanting to watch the coverage on Fox. While every channel has its pros and cons I just can’t.
“I’m 45 and probably the youngest of anyone who remembers him as a player instead of an opinionated insert insult here. As for the match this could be more competitive than it looks on paper Spain need a win the pressure is on them. Saudi Arabia could hold out for a draw and see what happens in their last match. “
News from the England camp, and it seems to be good news on Declan Rice.
“I’m ready and fit, raring to go. I was feeling a little bit of neural pain in my hamstring, which I was managing from after Christmas with Arsenal for a very long time. Obviously, not a lot of people would have known that. It was all behind-the-scenes stuff but it was a smart decision.
“In the end, that last 20 minutes is probably where you pick up the most, and it’s where you play a 70-minute match. But that last 20 is where you really feel your body going for it. And I think it was a smart decision because the last few days I felt really, really good.”
Alex Reid has penned today’s weekend special Football Daily.
Portugal v Uzbekistan on Tuesday enticingly pits the incredibly nice, incredibly 41-year-old-superstar-tolerant Roberto Martínez against Fabio Cannavaro, who’s won a Ballon d’Or as a player and the Chinese Super League as a coach. While the fixture following that game really does see the dream of Thomas Tuchel – in his first international job with England – taking on Queiroz, who is in charge of his ninth national side with Ghana.
The expected formations are 4-2-3-1 for Spain, and 5-3-2 for the Saudi Arabians.
The Saudi team features two Donis changes: Ali Lajami, a defender, and Nasser Al Dawsari, a midfielder, are preferred to Mohammed Abu Al Shamat and Mohamed Kanno. You may recall Salem Al Dawsari, the Saudi captain, as the man who scored the winner against Argentina.
An entertaining read, even for those of us who have just seen the clips.
In a conversation where his co-panelist is casually reminiscing about his days playing alongside Messi or exchanging shirts with Ronaldo Nazário at the World Cup, what exactly is Lalas going to talk about – coming on as a second-half substitute for Earnie Stewart in a friendly against Scotland in 1998? Helping the Kansas City Wizards finish last in the 1999 MLS Western Conference? Did Lalas enjoy an elite playing career? No. But does he do the background reading that could compensate for his relative lack of standing in a conversation with titans like Henry and Zlatan? Also no. But is he charming or funny or charismatic or otherwise magnetic on screen? Eh, no.
For the record, I once interviewed Alexi Lalas on the challenge of playing against Romario in the 1994 World Cup. He had this to say:
“He could kill you in so many different ways. If you remember from that World Cup, he scored so many types of goals. That ranged from solo adventures to an outside-of-the-right-foot half-volley off a corner kick. Romario was both the most difficult to play against and the best that I have faced.
“Roberto Baggio was doing his thing, but in terms of consistency and living up to the hype, he [Romario] was the best. As with all stars, there was a moment when the fans sit up in their seats, and that was a feeling I got with Romario. When it got close to him and the potential for his involvement in a play was there, everybody sat up in their seat. They knew that something spectacular would be happening.”
Saturday’s match reports here.
The Saudi Arabia coach, and Blackburn legend, Georgios Donis, spoke about the challenges facing his team: “Spain is not the same team when Yamal or Williams are on the bench.
“While they still have plenty of possession, they lack the individual one-on-one penetration when these two are missing. I’m not saying it’s a problem for Spain, but when those players are missing, they play in a different way. We saw this very clearly against Cape Verde.
“We are playing against one of the best teams in the world, and it’s very important that when you play against these kinds of teams, you should enjoy the experience and respect the opponent, but not too much.
“It is very hard for any team playing against Spain to have any time in possession. So what we must do is to be more in control of our movement and compact, and when the ball goes through the lines, be able to defend dynamically.
“It’s nice to see miracles in football, and we’ve seen favourites losing against underdogs. Of course, it’s great for Saudi football to have a great memory of the result against Argentina, but we aren’t drawing anything from that.
“I think we’ll feel more pressure in that [Cape Verde] game than we will against Spain.”
The Spain coach, Luis De La Fuente had this to say in his Saturday press conference: “This generation of footballers is highly competitive and really fired up… It’s going to be a completely different story,” he said at his pre-match press conference on Saturday. There is no drama or crisis. The bottom line is simply that we need to win tomorrow.”
Four changes for Spain: Lamine Yamal, Pedro Porro, Dani Olmo and Alex Baena also come into the side with Marcos Llorente, Fabian Ruiz, Ferran Torres and Gavi dropping out.
The teams – Lamine Yamal starts
Spain: Simon, Porro, Cubarsi, Laporte, Cucurella, Gonzalez, Rodri, Yamal, Olmo, Baena, Oyarzabal. Subs: Raya, Joan Garcia, Pubill, Grimaldo, Eric Garcia, Llorente, Merino, Torres, Fabian, Gavi, Pino, Williams, Zubimendi, Munoz, Iglesias.
Saudi Arabia: Al Owais, Abdulhamid, Tambakti, Lajami, Al Amri, Al Harbi, Nasser Al Dawsari, Al Khaibari, Al Juwayr, Al Buraikan, Salem Al Dawsari. Subs: Al Aqidi, Al Kassar, Majrashi, Yahya, Al Shehri, Al Boushal, Kadesh, Al Johani, Al Ghannam, Al Hajji, Al Hamdan, Mandash, Kanno, Thakri, Abu Al Shamat.
Referee: Raphael Claus (Brazil)
Perhaps one of the Saudi -players can write themselves into this high-grade selection?
Perhaps it can be their goalkeeper.
Madrid screening of Spain v Saudi Arabia cancelled due to heat
The public screening of Spain’s World Cup match against Saudi Arabia in Madrid on Sunday has been cancelled because of extreme heat forecast for the Spanish capital, officials said.
The match, due to kick off at 6pm local time on Sunday, had been scheduled to be shown on a giant screen installed by the Spanish football federation (RFEF) at a fan zone in Plaza de Colón in central Madrid.
Madrid city council and the federation decided to cancel the screening after national weather agency AEMET issued an orange heat warning – the second-highest level – for the Madrid region, with temperatures forecast to reach 40C.
“The decision has been taken with the aim of protecting the health of attendees, event staff and support services involved in the event,” Madrid city hall said in a statement, apologising for any inconvenience.
Officials urged supporters to watch the match indoors in air-conditioned spaces and avoid prolonged exposure to the heat.
Large parts of Spain are experiencing unusually high temperatures for June as a mass of hot air from North Africa moves across the Iberian Peninsula.
A total of 13 of Spain’s 17 regions are on orange alert for heat on Sunday, while the northern Basque Country bordering France is on red alert, the highest level.
Authorities advised residents and visitors to take precautions during the heatwave, including drinking water regularly, staying in cool environments, limiting outdoor physical activity during the hottest hours of the day and taking extra care of vulnerable people. AFP
Can Saudi Arabia repeat the magic of 2022?
Argentina arrived in Qatar on a 36-game unbeaten run. When Lionel Messi opened the scoring from the penalty spot after 10 minutes, a comfortable afternoon seemed in the offing. Saleh al-Shehri and Salem al-Dawsari had other ideas, Argentina had three goals disallowed for offside in the space of 13 minutes and the greatest comeback in Saudi Arabia football history was made. Argentina went on to lift the trophy, while defeats to Poland and Mexico meant the Saudis did not reach the knock-out stage.
Unai Simon over David Raya is a controversial choice for De la Fuentes. The Arsenal keeper could lay claim to being Europe’s best this season.
“Those at the Champions League final had a few more days, so I got there on the Wednesday night,” Raya says. “I arrived a bit before Fabián [Ruiz]. I was saying hello to some of the others in reception when he arrived. I went to say congratulations; that was almost the first thing I did. I couldn’t really talk [to him] after the final; I just didn’t have it in me. The next day we talked about the game properly. Just two mates chatting … I was happy for him that he could lift the trophy for a second time.”
A high pressure game for the European champions, as Sid Lowe reports.
“If we had scored one, the game would have changed,” Martín Zubimendi said. Immediately after the game, De la Fuente had offered a simple analysis: when the ball doesn’t want to go in it doesn’t want to go in, he insisted. Spain had racked up 27 shots, after all. Ferran Torres had hit the bar and seen another clear opportunity saved. Vozinha, the 40-year-old goalkeeper who stopped that, saved six more and was named the man of the match. “There’s nothing to reproach the team for,” Rodri said. “We generated chances but couldn’t put it away; the good thing is they created almost nothing.”
We wait to see what role Lamine Yamal will play today. His coach would surely like to be able to use him.
The worst mistake we could make would be to compare him to anyone. He is the midst of a process. He has exceptional footballing maturity and lives it all with total naturalness. He has great serenity and strength. We have to let him follow his path but those players who have something different are ready for that. They’re geniuses, like Dalí [who] can paint a picture, or Michelangelo. They’re different. What is exceptional to us, isn’t to them. In those extremes, they feel comfortable. Why? Because they are different. What we think is exceptional, they consider normal.
Preamble
Spain’s campaign did not get off to a flying start, and Luis de la Fuentes may wake up in the night to visions of Cape Verde’s Vozinha. He will have Georgia on his mind ever since Monday. Saudi Arabia are no pushovers and gave Uruguay a scare in their opening match. Memories of downing Argentina four years ago still abound, and so Spain might beware. They can ill afford to go into the final game with Uruguay at a disadvantage. All eyes on Lamine Yamal, whose fitness situation remains opaque, though Spain need their other forwards to come to the party.
Kick-off 5pm UK, 1pm ET, 2am AEST. Join me.
A topless man can be seen driving erratically in Edinburgh before abandoning his car and attacking a black man and a delivery rider.
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