As Arsenal travelled to Bayern Munich looking to reach what used to be familiar ground in the Women’s Champions League, Jonas Eidevall did not need to look back far to remind his players how transformative victory can be. It has been 10 years since Arsenal, the only English team to win a European title, last reached the semi-finals. Progress now would be timely, and not just for Arsenal’s development under Eidevall. It would be a significant moment for English clubs in the Champions League, as well as the tournament as a whole.
Over the past four seasons, only six teams have reached the Champions League semi-finals: Lyon, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Wolfsburg, Bayern Munich and Chelsea. It is down to Arsenal defeating Bayern, or Roma stunning Barcelona, to change that line-up. That in itself is striking, given how long Arsenal were the standard bearers in women’s football in England, but in recent years it has been left to Chelsea to carry that charge amid an underperformance by Women’s Super League clubs in Europe.
