Women’s Champions League tie predictions after the quarter-final draw | OneFootball

Real Madrid v Arsenal

There are no easy games come the quarter-finals of the Champions League but Arsenal will raise an eyebrow at getting the kindest route to the final of the three English sides. Madrid are the youngest team in the tournament, Real Tacon having been absorbed into the club as the women’s team in 2020, and they have reached the last eight for the second time. They are second in Liga F, five points behind Barcelona, who beat them 5-0 in the Supercopa final at the end of last month. Madrid added the Brazilian defender Yasmim in January to strengthen their backline. Arsenal, the only English team to have picked up European honours, when they won the title in 2007, are in their 16th quarter-final, a record they share with Lyon. Under Renée Slegers the Gunners have lost only twice this season, to Chelsea in the WSL and against Manchester City in the semi-final of the League Cup on Thursday. The addition of Chloe Kelly, on loan from City, and the USA defender Jenna Nighswonger has added a little depth as they attempt to go one step further than in 2023, when their injury-hit side narrowly missed out on a place in the final to Wolfsburg.

Predicted winners: Arsenal

Manchester City v Chelsea

Groundhog Day. Although Chelsea and City have not met in the Champions League, this fixture has been a somewhat tiresome feature of the latter stages of domestic cup competitions for years. The two sides are set to play each other in the League Cup final on 15 March and in the league on 23 March. The Champions League draw now means they will meet four times in 12 or 13 days depending on the scheduling. If you were to pick a winner from a single fixture it would be the WSL champions, Chelsea. Sonia Bompastor’s unbeaten side are in formidable form and have strength in depth that is the envy of clubs around the world. City have lost five of their past 12 games in all competitions but their ability to bounce back from defeat has been impressive, Gareth Taylor’s side suffering a 4-2 loss to Manchester United in the WSL three days before beating them 2-1 in the League Cup quarter-finals, then losing 4-3 at home to Arsenal in the league before earning a 2-1 win away to the Gunners four days later to reach the League Cup final. Can City pull off an upset in the competition Chelsea want the most? It is unlikely, but can they cause problems for them across the four games? Yes. Both sides have added to their ranks, with the USA centre-back Naomi Girma and Barcelona midfielder Keira Walsh brought in by Chelsea and Rebecca Knaak from Rosengård and the former North Carolina Courage forward Kerolin among City’s additions.

Predicted winners: Chelsea

Wolfsburg v Barcelona

Two-time winners v three-time champions. Barcelona beat Wolfsburg 3-2 in the 2023 final and lifted their third European crown last season. The German side sit third in the Frauen-Bundesliga, one point behind the leaders, Eintracht Frankfurt, and second-placed Bayern Munich. Sveindis Jónsdóttir’s four goals in their win at Roma equalled the record for most goals scored by one player in a group game. Barcelona suffered a shock 2-1 defeat by Levante last Saturday, their first home defeat in the league in six years. The superstar-laden squad, which includes the two-time Ballon d’Or winners Alexia Putellas and Aitana Bonmatí, will be the favourites to lift the trophy in Lisbon in May, but the journey won’t be straightforward. Power past Wolfsburg and they will play Chelsea or City in the semi-finals. Their two most recent defeats before the Levante game? A 2-0 loss to City in the group stage in October and a 1-0 home defeat by Chelsea in the semi-finals last year. Increasingly, European opponents are working out how to nullify the threat. The sale of Walsh could prove costly if the midfielder Patricia Guijarro, who is out for about three weeks with a thigh injury, is not at her sharpest for this tie.

Predicted winners: Barcelona

Bayern Munich v Lyon

Lyon are unbeaten at the top of Ligue 1, seven points clear, but a loss to Stade de Reims on penalties in the Coupe de France round of 32 means only Chelsea have an unblemished record this season of the sides left in the competition. Bayern got off to a thrilling start in the Champions League group stage, a Pernille Harder hat-trick helping them to a 5-2 win at home against Arsenal, but a 1-1 draw with Vålerenga and 3-2 defeat at the Gunners meant they finished second. They have also lost Georgia Stanway to a knee injury that required surgery. Lyon registered a perfect group stage campaign for the first time, Kadidiatou Diani scoring four times to finish as their top scorer. How they fare under Joe Montemurro in his first season as their manager, in the tournament they have won eight times, will be interesting.

Predicted winners: Lyon

Header image: [Composite: Action Images/Getty]