Matildas star Ellie Carpenter has received the perfect gift for her 24th birthday – booking the chance to claim a third Women’s Champions League triumph with Lyon.
The Matildas’ defense was the toast of their teammates after their 2-1 victory in the second leg of the semi-final against Paris St Germain secured them a 5-3 aggregate victory and a place in the final against the champion Barcelona.
His teammates gathered around him at the end of the game in the Parc des Princes and sang Happy Birthday to the dancer Matilda.
Now Carpenter has the extraordinary opportunity to take home a third Champions League winner’s medal with Europe’s most successful women’s team at just 24 years old.
He was a substitute in the final when they beat Wolfsburg in 2020 to claim their fifth consecutive crown and, agonizingly, suffered an ACL injury early in their 2022 showdown against Barcelona in Turin.
But now the Cowra star is hoping to play a bigger role in Europe’s premier women’s game by taking on the defending champions again in Bilbao, Spain, on May 25.
It will be a rematch of the 2019 and 2022 finals, both won by Lyon.
The French giants will be looking to extend their record ninth title after goals from Selma Bacha and Melchie Dumornay secured a second victory in a week over their domestic rivals.
After Lyon won the first leg 3-2 at home, they quickly caught PSG off guard in the third minute on Sunday, with a penalty corner that led to Bacha cutting inside to open the scoring with a low shot from the edge of the area. box.
They almost doubled the lead in the 34th minute, but PSG goalkeeper Constance Picaud made an excellent save to prevent teammate Jade Le Guilly from scoring an own goal.
Carpenter had her work cut out against PSG’s brilliant Tabitha Chawinga, but largely did an excellent job directing the Malawi international, who still managed to equalize four minutes before half-time with an angled shot.
Carpenter received a yellow card for a foul on Chawinga in the second half, but his team continued to create the best chances. Picaud had to make a good save from French forward Kadidiatou Diani in the 43rd minute, Dumornay in the 52nd and Amel Majri and Dumornay. again in ’65.
They finally put an end to the tie nine minutes from time when Majri crossed for 20-year-old Haitian international Dumornay, who scored to ensure an 11th final for Lyon, extending his record.
Barcelona had won the first semi-final, overcoming a 1-0 deficit in the first leg by defeating 10-man Chelsea 2-0 with goals from Aitana Bonmatí and Fridolina Rolfo.
The victory was controversial with Chelsea boss Emma Hayes describing the key sending off of Kadeisha Buchanan as “the worst in the history of the Women’s Champions League”.
This year will be the ninth consecutive year that Lyon (2016-2020, 2022) or Barcelona (2021, 2023) will win the European women’s crown and the third time they will meet in the final.
Lyon also won the 2011 and 2012 titles.
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AAP
