Arsenal’s Champions League title defense came to an end with a 4-3 aggregate loss to Lyon in the semi-finals and an unsurprising 3-1 win over Lyon in the second leg.
Arsenal capitalized on Lyon’s mistakes in the first leg to take a 2-1 lead into Saturday’s match, but the hosts offered a very different outlook from last weekend’s rather conservative game.
One of those differences was the return of Melqui Dumornay, who had missed the previous four games through injury, sparking Arsenal’s comeback.
The Haitian international earned a penalty for the hosts in the 16th minute after being fouled by Lotte Uben Moi. Initially, no spot kick was awarded, but after a lengthy VAR review, which depended on whether an Arsenal defender had touched the ball before a player, the referee overturned his own on-field decision and awarded a penalty.
Lyon captain Wendy Renard’s first shot was saved by Daphne van Domselaar, but as Arsenal began to attack their opponents, the referee blown the whistle to take the penalty back after the goalkeeper was spotted outside the goal line.
It was a long road back to the field, but Leonard’s mentality won out. A similar move was made in the second one, but this time the Arsenal stopper was unable to stop it and Lyon equalized on aggregate.
Wendy Leonard scores from the penalty spot against Arsenal
This was a well-deserved goal for the hosts, who doubled their lead in the second leg shortly after. A great finish from Kadidiatou Diani, who got his foot up before losing Kim Little and guided the ball home from an angle.
Arsenal ended the first half with just one shot on target, but the woodwork rattled in quick succession around the hour mark, with Stina Blackstenius and Olivia Smith finding the posts on either side.
With 15 minutes remaining, Alessia Russo had the Gunners’ first shot on target, coming through the middle of Ashley Lawrence and Lindsay Heaps to tuck in Smilla Holmberg’s cross.
Kadidiatou Diani scores Lyon’s second goal.
However, VAR was not finished yet in this game, and once again the game was decided by a close decision. Dumornay picks Jules Brand on the right side of the area. It was great control and finishing from the German player, but the offside flag was raised.
It took three minutes of VAR and a semi-automatic offside check before Brand was determined to be onside, meaning the top of the shirt lined up with the sole of Uben Moi’s foot.
Alessia Russo scored for Arsenal against Lyon, but it wasn’t enough to send the Gunners into the final.
This gave Lyon a 4-3 aggregate lead, winning in the most dramatic of circumstances and ending the Gunners’ pursuit of a second successive Champions League title.
Lyon, on the other hand, have reached their 12th European final and are aiming for their ninth title. They will face either Bayern or Barcelona in the final on May 23rd in Oslo. Both teams played the second leg on Sunday and are currently tied 1-1 on aggregate.
Williamson: Credit to Lyon, but unhappy with VAR
Arsenal defender Leah Williamson told BBC Sport: “Lyon are a difficult team to play against. They were good today, but we weren’t quite there in the first half. I thought we could have played better in the second half, but it wasn’t enough.”
“You want to win games, take chances, create chances, and we couldn’t do that today. It’s disappointing.”
As for whether the opportunity was too much for the players, he said: “Sometimes you have to give the other team credit for being on fire.
“This team is very humble and works very hard. Everyone is giving it their all. One thing that can’t be taken away is that everyone gave everything they had.”
“The game of football has its way and we definitely should have scored a few more goals in the first leg to give us some breathing space.”
On VAR’s decision: “At the start of the game, it felt like the ball was in play for about two minutes of the 20 minutes.
“As far as the rules…it’s frustrating because I don’t think we’re all on the same page. It’s been very stop-start.”
Sleggers: “Lyon deserved to win”
Arsenal manager Rene Sleggers told BBC Sport: “Lyon raised the level today. They were really strong.
“They brought Selma Bacha and Melky Dumornay back into the side, who are world-class players, and they were really effective in certain moments.
“It was a very close game, it was close… but it was very disappointing for us. We went through some difficult situations today, but we were close and we all believed we could win. It was really tough when it was 3-1.
“I spoke to some of the players on the pitch and they said they were disappointed. They are very humble and they are working very hard so I hope they all make it to the final, but unfortunately this is football. There is a lot of disappointment in the dressing room.”
As for whether Lyon deserved it: “Yes, they were the better team. They were two teams with styles of football that were at odds with each other through two periods.”
