Arsenal women face Lyon in Champions League showdown. The battle of retaining the title of the UEFA Women-Champions League by Arsenal Women starts this evening with a hefty face off against Olympique plate Feminin versus the potential Olympic giants of the sport at Meadow Park. This is the opening game of the Group Stage. The proven champions are against the most successful team in the history of the competition which sets the stage of a titanic battle.
The Clash of European Titans
Tonight is a reenactment of the tight semi-final of the last season. Arsenal overcame in a glorious 4-1 goal in France to situate the game at 5-3 on aggregate. They further won the trophy the second time. Although of that outcome, the historical record is greatly in favor of Lyon. France, giants have won six of the nine champions league encounters between the two teams and more worryingly to Arsenal is the fact that the champions has won all the four times they have visited England and faced the Gunners.
The added intrigue comes about by the current form of the two teams contradicting each other. Lyon enters Borehamwood in fantastic style since they have won all four of their opening domestic league matches. They are devastating with 19 goals in only four matches, including 8-1 spanking of RC Lens last week. Arsenal on the other hand are seeking a rebound. Their previous three Women Super League games have been lost, the latter being a close 3-2 loss to Manchester City last week, breaking the streak of a perfect start to the domestic season.
The Match Outlook and Key Details
The game will be played at the stadium in Meadow Park, the Mangata Developments Stadium. The kick-off time of the game will be 8:00 pm (UK). With the two sides equally matched in power (Frida Maanum and Alessia Russo of Arsenal set to attack, and Lyon counterattacking with such in-form players as Liana Joseph and Vicki Becho) one can expect an open and high-scoring game. Indeed, numerous forecasts indicate that both teams will have at least some goals. There would be more than 2.5 goals in the game.
Author’s Opinion
To Arsenal, this is not merely their first match in a group. But the launch pad towards proving their historical winning was not a one-off experience. Their title defence would be a giant statement to the world to save their trophy against a team of the pedigree and spirit of Lyon, who have just as much confidence in their ability to win as they do in their perpetrators.
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