UWCL 2023/24: What To Know Ahead Of The Semi Final Between OL And PSG

Assile Toufaily April 17, 2024

0 4 minutes read

UWCL 2023/24: What To Know Ahead Of The Semi Final Between OL And PSG

Lyon faces PSG in the semi-final of the UWCL without their injured striker, Eugenie Le Sommer. … [+] (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP)

AFP via Getty Images

OL and PSG face off in the Women’s Champions League semi-final this Saturday.
The D1 Arkéma will have at least one representative in the Champions League final.
Lyon and PSG will meet for the seventh time in the UWCL.

Road To The Semi-Final

Olympique Lyonnais and Paris Saint-Germain meet in the Women’s Champions League semi-final. Last season, both teams were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Chelsea and FC Barcelona, who went on to win the competition.

Olympique Lyonnais defeated SL Benfica to reach the Champions League semi-finals. After winning the first leg 2-1 in Portugal, Sonia Bompastor’s side comfortably secured victory in the return leg at home with a score of 4-1. In the league, Bompastor’s side is firmly seated at the top of D1 Arkéma.

Paris Saint-Germain’s last loss was back in November 2023. (Photo by Aurelien Meunier – PSG/PSG via … [+] Getty Images)

PSG via Getty Images

PSG also cruised through their quarter-final. They first secured a victory against BL Häcken, also away from home, with a score of 2-1 in a match where the score line was deceptive given the dominance of the Parisians.

In the return leg, Jocelyn Prêcheur’s players secured an easy 3-0 victory to reach the semi-finals without breaking a sweat.

In the league, the capital’s team occupies second place, trailing behind their historical rivals, OL.

In 2017, The French Final

Two defeats in two weeks for PSG against Lyon. Before the two clubs met for the first all-French final in the history of the Women’s Champions League, they had already faced each other in the French Cup final (1-1; 7-6 on penalties).

In the Champions League, a penalty knock-out session was needed to decide.

The two teams failed to find the back of the net in 120 minutes (0-0; 7-6 on penalties).

A cruel scenario for Patrice Lair’s players who did not take advantage of Eugénie Le Sommer’s missed penalty (the second attempt for Lyon). The shootout was decided when both goalkeepers stepped up as the eighth shooter.

While Sarah Bouhaddi successfully converted her penalty, PSG goalkeeper Katarzyna Kiedrzynek missed hers, allowing Lyon to be crowned champions for the fourth time.

Lyon Never Loses In The Semi-Finals

In 2016, 2020, and 2022, when PSG and Lyon faced each other in the semi-finals, it was always the latter who reached the final.

In 2015-2016, PSG didn’t stand a chance against Lyon, who thrashed them 7-0 in the first leg before securing qualification in the return leg (8-0 on aggregate).

In 2020, Lyon didn’t qualify as easily. The semi-final was played as a single match due to Covid restrictions, and they clinched the win by the narrowest of margins (1-0).

Wendie Renard is a threat for PSG’s defense. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP)

AFP via Getty Images

Wendie Renard scored the only goal of the match with a header following an Amel Majri free-kick.

2 years later, it was again Lyon’s captain who found the back of the net – in both legs – during the most recent double confrontation between the 2 teams.

Once again, PSG couldn’t overcome OL’s hurdle to reach the final 4, losing 5-3 on aggregate over the 2 matches.

PSG – The Forever First

Despite Lyon’s overall advantage (4 qualifications to 2), it was PSG who eliminated OL in their first encounter in the Champions League, during the 2014-2015 season.

After a draw in the first leg of the round of 16 (1-1), Fatmire Alushi secured qualification for Paris with a late goal in the return leg (1-0).

More recently, in 2021, PSG managed to eliminate their rival for a second time. Despite losing 1-0 in the first leg at home, Paris managed to overturn the deficit in the return leg. Olivier Echouafni’s players won 2-1, qualifying on the away goals rule.

On The Verge Of A Record-Breaking Attendance?

4 and a half years later, the attendance record for a match of the OL Women’s team at home in Décines could finally be broken.

On November 16, 2019, during the OL-PSG showdown in the D1 Arkéma, 30,661 spectators gathered at the Groupama.

On Saturday, with more than 30,000 tickets officially issued, Saturday’s match is set to break this attendance record.

Lyon’s coach, Sonia Bompastor, is excited about the prospect of breaking the attendance record. … [+] (Photo by Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images)

Getty Images

The enthusiasm for the semi-final next Saturday (7:00 PM – Paris Time) is undoubtedly pleasing for Sonia Bompastor.

“It’s fantastic, it’s really great,” rejoiced Sonia Bompastor. “As I’ve said before, when you’re in this profession, you want people in the stadium, both to feel the support and to share the excitement with the fans. It’s pleasing to feel that there’s an enthusiasm building up.”