The UEFA Women’s Champions League returns for the quarter-final stage of the competition, let’s take a look at the first two matches!
Ajax v Chelsea
Ajax v Chelsea starts the quarter-final round of the UWCL on Tuesday 19 March with an early kick-off. These two teams have never met before, and it is also Ajax’s first time in the knockouts. Chelsea are looking to continue its progression to reach their second UWCL final.
A look at the players –
Critical players for Ajax would be the experienced Tiny Hoekstra, Nadine Noordam, and Sherida Spitse. Noordam and Romée Leuchter are their biggest goal threats – the first with 6 goals in 7 of their recent games and the second with 8 in 7. From a fantasy perspective, Spitse and Leuchter have registered well as attackers in points so far. The January transfer window saw no activity for Ajax. Nikita Tromp is unavailable, and Roos van der Veen is not registered with Ajax’s knockout squad.
Chelsea have been impacted with injuries, with club captain Millie Bright not yet at the point of return. Strikers Sam Kerr and Mia Fishel have suffered ACL injuries and are not registered. Make sure to check the ShePlays UWCL availability tracker for coverage of all players unavailable for the upcoming round!
In the transfer window, Chelsea brought in forward Mayra Ramirez (previously of Levante and Colombian international) and defender Nathalie Björn (previously of WSL Everton and Sweden international), who would be looking to return to the competition after previously being involved in Rosengard’s campaign. Both are currently injured and looking to be out for 1-2 weeks, so they will not be available for this first leg. Chelsea midfielders Jessie Fleming and Katerina Svitkova have both transferred in the winter to Portland Thorns and Slavia Prague, respectively. Good news on the Chelsea injury front is the return on American forward Caterina Macario – previously of Lyon – from an ACL injury, scoring in her first two substitute appearances.
Niamh Charles and Erin Cuthbert, who have shared the armband since injuries, continue to put in a shift and total 60+ fantasy points in the group stages. Domestically, Lauren James is their biggest attacking threat. She’s yet to score in this season’s UWCL whilst having 18 attempts on goal, 8 on target. A defensive highlight would be reliable centre-back Jess Carter, who sits 4th overall in completed passes with 394 in 5 matches. Registered as an midfielder, Sjoeke Nüsken has proven to be a very valuable and versatile addition this season, joining Carter in a centre-back partnership as well as in her goal contributions.
Form –
Ajax’s run in the group stages saw 3 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses, with 8 goals conceded and their goal difference totalling a -1 score. An away draw and a home win against Bayern Munich are the most notable. Currently, they are unbeaten in their last 7 domestic matches with some big scorelines, pointing to their previously mentioned goal contributors being the most profitable to target. Chelsea’s group stage provided 4 wins and 2 draws, with only one clean sheet in GW6, though conceding 5 goals. Whilst a busy fixture month, Friday’s game saw only two substitutions for the Blues in bringing off Charles and James.
Benfica v Lyon
Historically UWCL-prolific Lyon travel to Lisbon for the first leg of the quarter-finals against Benfica. The sides met back in 2021 in Benfica’s first experience of the group stage. Lyon won both legs by 5-0, with goals from Daniëlle Van de Donk, Ada Hergerberg (2), Wendie Renard, and Griedge Mbock Bathy, going on to win the UWCL title. This is also Benfica’s first time qualifying through the group stage.
A look at the players –
Benfica midfielder and goal threat Marie-Yasmine Alidou ties with many other forwards in the UWCL with 4 goals so far. Jéssica Silva (2 goals, 2 assists) is also a great attacking choice. Daniela Santos, Matilde Silva, Beatriz Nogueira have all missed the last two matches, with Svava Guðmundsdóttir and Valéria Cantuário not registered in the knockout squad. Benfica had no transfer activity, but the window saw Lyon foward Inès Benyahia move on loan for the rest of the season. Wendie Renard has not yet returned after surgery at the end of last year.
Lyon’s Hergberg leads the way in attacking stats from 5 goals, 2 assists, and 12 attempts on target, continuing her position as the all-time leading goalscorer since 2019. Sara Däbritz has 5 goals and one penalty conversion in their last 4 games. Looking also to fantasy points, the midfield duo of Vanessa Gilles and Daniëlle van de Donk are the more expensive and profitable. However, Dabritz and Amel Majri are certainly good targets. Goalkeeper Christine Endler conceded 3 goals in the group stages and totalled 45 points, a reliable addition to your fantasy team.
Form –
Benfica’s run in the group stage began with a loss to Barca, followed by 2 wins and 3 draws in the second legs. They qualified through while conceding 12 and only scoring 9. Their most significant fixture with Barca in round 6 ended in a 4-4 scoreline at home with 2 goals from Alidou and one from Silva. Currently at the top of their league – Campeonato Nacional Feminino – a form of 6 wins and 2 draws in all domestic matches will add confidence.
Lyon’s run in the group stages was the second-best top-of-the-group placing, just behind last year’s winners Barca. The chance of total wins eluded them in the away fixture to Brann and the home fixture against Slavia Praha. A 90+4’ minute header in the end equalled OL’s early 2 goal lead against Brann. And in round 6 with Slavia Praha, early goals from both sides also ended in a draw after a Gilles own goal in the 90+1’ minute. The recent domestic record sees Lyon draw against Paris FC and beaten on penalties by Fleury in the league cup semi-final.
Predictions
Expectations would be for Chelsea and Lyon to get through this quarter-final stage and maintain the advantage in both legs. Ajax have been unbeaten at home, so perhaps both teams will prefer this order of the legs, beginning at Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam. The reverse fixture would expect to boost Chelsea through – though this may not be a repeat of their last-minute extra-time equalizer against Lyon last season, which sent the fixture to penalties and Chelsea subsequently through to the semi-finals. Chelsea is known to rotate and use their squad depth perhaps more likely to transpire in this first leg. They still manage to produce the results, given their injuries. Benfica will look to exploit counter opportunities but still anticipate Lyon’s attack to be able to dominate, emulating their most exploitative score lines of the group stages: 9-0 and 7-0.