Chelsea coast to UWCL semi-finals; Lyon ease past Benfica | OneFootball

The Women’s Champions League quarter-final second leg’s are underway Wednesday evening as two teams booked their spots in the semis. Here is what happened around the grounds.

Chelsea ride first-leg win to semi-finals

Scorers: Ramírez 33′ ; Grant 65′

Ajax earned a draw away to Chelsea but an emphatic win from the Londoners in the first-leg saw them move on.

The Blues already had a sizable lead to protect heading to the final 90 minutes of the tie, but they still pushed to extend their advantage in the first-half.

They were rewarded for their efforts just past the hour mark when Mayra Ramírez fired home the opener to extend the hosts’ aggregate lead to four.

Ajax fought back after the break to level the score on the night through Chasity Grant, but it was merely a consolation goal in the grand scheme of the tie.

Lyon ease past Benfica into the semi-finals

Scorers: Cascarino 43′, 51′, Diani 90+1′, 90+6′ ; Alidou 45′

A Delphine Cascarino brace pushed Lyon past Benfica and into the semis.

It was a thoroughly even affair similar to the first-leg, with both teams securing spells of possession while probing the opposition’s rearguard.

It took until the end of the half but the game finally came to life when Delphine Cascarino put Lyon two ahead on aggregate before the break, only for that lead to be cut by Marie-Yasmine Alidou with nearly the last kick of the half.

Cascarino backed up her impressive first half showing with another goal just six minutes after the restart to reclaim Lyon’s two-goal advantage.

The final nail in the coffin came in stoppage time when the hosts bagged two more to move four ahead on aggregate and end the tie.