CAPITAL GAINS
There must be something in the London water. Well, of course there is, it’s jobby; thanks to the shower in charge of the country, there’s tonnes of the stuff bobbing up and down the Thames. But we’re not talking about Spurs or Chelsea today, so our new favourite idiom can have the rest of the day off.
Well, we are talking about Chelsea, just not that male shower. Jobby’s for the boys, it seems. Today’s Football Daily is all about the possibility of having two London clubs in the last four of the Women’s Champions League.
This is where – and yes it is a weekday – Football Daily gets confused. For as long as we can remember, English clubs have been just below the top tier in the WCL, as Chelsea found out most bitterly when they were 4-0 down to Barcelona after half an hour of the 2021 final. Last season Arsenal were well beaten by Wolfsburg in the quarter-finals and Chelsea didn’t even get out of the groups.
Suddenly, everything has changed. Arsenal beat the holders and serial champions Lyon home and away in the group stage, while Chelsea did likewise against Paris Saint-Germain. More importantly, Chelsea won 1-0 in Lyon last week, making them favourites going into tonight’s second leg at Stamford Bridge, and Arsenal overcame a 1-0 deficit and a biblical downpour to put Bayern Munich out on a thrilling night at the Emirates.
The players are pretty much the same as in previous years, when English clubs tended to fall at the first really difficult hurdle. In some cases, the teams aren’t even as good. Arsenal beat Bayern Munich without arguably their three best players: Beth Mead and Vivianne Miedema are out with ACL injuries, and Kim Little limped off after 11 minutes. Yet Arsenal were still much the better team, with Frida Maanum scoring a goal of such undeniable brilliance as to give an incel cognitive dissonance.
Chelsea don’t have a deficit to overcome, but their task tonight could be even tougher. Lyon, serial winners of this competition, are unlikely to go quietly, and Chelsea’s confidence may be fragile after their emphatic recent defeats to Arsenal and Manchester City. Millie Bright, their talismanic centre-back, is also doubtful with a knee injury. And Ada Hegerberg could be back for Lyon. Hang on, this is all getting a bit negative. We wouldn’t drink that water if we were you.
Let’s accentuate the parochial positive: the draw means there is a possibility of an all-English final. That feels premature, not least because if Chelsea get past Lyon, they will face a frightening Barcelona – who blistered Roma 5-1 last night to go through 6-1 on aggregate – in the semi-finals. But the fact it’s even up for discussion reflects what a breakthrough season it has been for English teams in Europe. And it beats talking about jobby.
LIVE ON BIG WEBSITE
The Women’s Big Cup quarter-finals continue with John Brewin watching Wolfsburg 3-1 PSG (4-1 on aggregate) at 5.45pm, and Rob Smyth on duty for Chelsea 1-1 Lyon (2-1 on agg) at 8pm – all times BST.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“If you play for most National League clubs, you have a full-time job that involves putting your body on the line. Having an agreement which means you are going to be paid your wages if you get injured shouldn’t be allowed to become part of a negotiation. It should be a basic expectation” – Omar Beckles, the Leyton Orient defender and PFA chairman, tells Big Paper why proposed changes to non-league contracts have to be stopped.
FOOTBALL DAILY LETTERS
“Credit where it is (very rarely) due, the score predictions in Wednesday’s Fiv … Football Daily weren’t half bad” – Sam Huscroft.
“While Eric Wynalda’s points aren’t wrong entirely, he also represents the first of several generational cohorts of players who went abroad, learned about how things were done in established football countries, and then come home and did nothing about it. Neither his, nor the next, nor the Donovan generation produced any decent coaches – a real shame for American soccer” – Alex Glass.
“That row of small, ugly cars [Wednesday’s Memory Lane], apparently constructed of plastic, may need explaining to younger readers. Right up to the late 1970s, they were the only available motorised transport for people with physical disabilities. I suppose they were better than nothing, but they looked daft. Thankfully, from 1978 the Motability scheme has awarded grants for disabled people to buy adapted cars” – Charles Antaki.
“James McClean’s courage and transparency about his autism diagnosis will no doubt result in a compassionate and open-minded exchange of ideas on the subject. You know, like when he objected to wearing the poppy. Bracing myself” – Rob Pait.
“Corsham Town are playing Ascot United at home on Saturday in the FA Vase semi-finals. The Quarrymen are just one step from a Wembley final” – Mike Smith.
“Re: Alex McLeish’s response to Rodri’s whining [Wednesday’s bobs]. Humble paella?” – Allastair McGillivray.
Send your letters to the.boss@theguardian.com. Today’s winner of our prizeless letter o’ the day is … Rob Pait.
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