Häcken v Paris Saint-Germain
Wednesday’s first match of the UEFA Women’s Champions League sees group D runners-up Häcken host group C winners Paris Saint-Germain in Gothenburg. The two teams met last season in the UWCL qualifying round with PSG winning 4-1 on aggregate over two legs. Goalscorers included Lieke Martens (2), Kadidiatou Diani (2), and Marika Bergman-Lundin.
Winter transfers
Since the group stage, Häcken have lost Swedish international Elin Rubensson to the NWSL’s Houston Dash and Marika Bergman-Lundin to the WSL’s West Ham United. Häcken has signed two young Swedes with 19-year-old forward Matilda Nildén from AIK Fotboll and 20-year-old midfielder Alice Bergström. The Getingarna (Wasps) have not announced any player unavailable at the time of authoring this article.
PSG had five departures over the January transfer window but none of the five had scored points. The Parisians added young American defender Eva Gaetino to their squad from the University of Notre Dame. Oriane Jean-François and Paulina Dudek still remain out of the squad with long term injuries.
How they got here:
Häcken completed the group stage with 3 wins, 2 draws, and 1 loss. The most notable match in the group stage was a 0-0 result against Chelsea away at Stamford Bridge. The stand-out players in the match were Jennifer Falk (5 saves) and the centre-back pairing of Josefine Rybrink and Aivi Luik (14 clearances). In attack the top goal-scorer was Rosa Kafaji with 3 goals from 9 shots on target and 1 assist.
PSG had a rough start to the UWCL losing to Ajax 2-0 and Bayern Munich 1-0 in the first two matches. The Parisians navigated the group stage with 3 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses. The squad was bolstered in the latter rounds with the return of French superstar Marie-Antoinette Katoto to full-fitness. Katoto scored 4 goals in the 3 matches following the opening defeats too keep PSG hope of qualification alive. Notably, PSG’s spot in the final eight was only secured in the 88’ minute of the final group stage match! Thus far in the competition, PSG have failed to keep a clean sheet and have heavily relied on Katoto and captain midfielder Grace Geyoro.
Predictions:
The safe bet would be backing PSG given their history in the UWCL and roster full of internationals. However, Häcken have the potential to provide an upset given their impressive defense and difficulty to break down under pressure. My prediction is a low scoring affair in Gothenburg and Häcken taking the match to a decider in Paris. Overall, I expect PSG’s attacking prowess of Katoto, Geyoro and Tabitha Chawinga (14 league goals) to prevail across the two legs.
Brann v Barcelona
Reigning UEFA Women’s Champions League Champions Barcelona face 2022 Norwegian League Champions Braan in Bergen for the first leg. The two sides have never met previously in the UWCL. The match will be a homecoming for Barcelona’s Norwegian stars Caroline Graham Hansen and Ingrid Engen who are yet to don the blaugrana in their home country.
Winter transfers
Brann lost forward Maria Brochmann in the winter to Swedish club Djurgårdens IF. Brochmann appeared twice from the bench in the group stage. Brann have not announced any players unavailable at the time of authoring this article.
Winter in Barcelona, saw Asisat Oshoala transfer to the NWSL’s Bay FC, where she became their inaugural goal-scorer over the weekend. The blaugrana have seen some welcome returns from injury including captain and midfielder Alexia Putellas, and Swedish forward Fridolina Rolfö. Centre-backs Mapi León and Jana Fernández remain on the injury list.
How they got here:
Brann finished second in group B behind Lyon with 4 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss. The stand-out match of the group stage was a 2-2 draw against Lyon at home. Brann were able to came back from a 2-0 deficit in the first half. Lyon will claim the match was heavily impacted by the weather and a snowstorm that blew through toward the end. However, Brann controlled possession with 64% and out shot Lyon 13-9 with 6 on target. The top performer from the group stage was midfielder Justine Kielland who scored 3 goals from 5 shots on target and provided 1 assist.
Barcelona had the best performance in the group stage, with 5 wins, 1 draw and 0 losses outscoring opponents 27-5. Their only stumble was in the final match where they tied 4-4 with Benfica away, equalising in the 90+6’ minute. Caroline Graham Hansen leads the UWCL with 5 assists on top of her 4 goals which is one behind equal-top goal scorer Salma Paralluelo (5 goals).
Predictions:
Brann will likely be without the elements and the majority of possession to help them against Barcelona in the quarter-finals. The only potential thing in Brann’s favour is Barcelona’s league match in between the 2 legs against Real Madrid which could see Jonathan Giraldez rotate players. Barcelona are almost guaranteed to walk away victors in the first leg and they have never lost at Estadi Johan Cruyff and with 79 wins and 1 draw.
The biggest question will be the Barcelona line-up. Both Putellas and Rolfö starting at the weekend against Tenerife. With both still having managed minutes they are not guaranteed to start in the UWCL. Due to the match being played in Norway Graham Hansen is likely to start and my other locks to start would be Aitana Bonmatí, Mariona Caldentey, Salma Paralluelo, Patri Guijarro, and Ona Batlle who were all either rested or came off the bench at the weekend.
Feature Image Credit:
Caroline Graham Hansen, Girls on the Ball, All rights reserved