If last season taught Arsenal anything, it was that you don’t need to win the sprint to edge the marathon. They certainly won’t be complaining about the head start, though.
It was a rematch of titans: the French champions against the European champions, ready and waiting for round two after a gruelling battle that ended 5-3 in favour of the English side last year and set the Gunners on their way to glory.
When Lyon took the lead early on here today, one could have been forgiven for thinking they had accidentally stepped into a time machine back a year.
Unlike last time, though, Arsenal made sure to make their clamorous Emirates crowd proud – and slightly more at ease – by being the ones to claim the first half in this two-legged tie as their own.
They will know, though, that this is far from over. They managed to overturn the deficit last season, after all, when heading over to France 2–1 down after the first leg and going on to score four on foreign soil.
But the muscle memory will certainly help in the long run if they are to defy expectations once again and book a second consecutive Champions League final. This time around they have Olivia Smith in their ranks as well.
Arsenal’s £1million signing Olivia Smith scored the winning goal to give the hosts the lead in their Champions League semi-final
Arsenal rushed off the starting mark with purpose, appearing intent on catching Lyon out from the off
It was from Smith’s late goal here that the match swung in Arsenal’s favour. The £1 million signing – whose nimble feet have become a nightmare for less speedy opponents – was rewarded for her relentlessness late on when she forced the turnover and scrambled the ball over the line.
‘That’s why we brought her here, I’m so happy she’s a part of Arsenal,’ Arsenal boss Renee Slegers said.
‘I love working with Liv. One of the things that she’s impressed me with is how different ideas on paper or video get transferred onto the pitch. That ability to change things is important in the way that we want to play, and she does that really well.’
Prior to Smith’s late intervention, the momentum was very much in Arsenal’s favour despite the scores staying level.
The hosts rushed off the starting mark with purpose, appearing intent on catching Lyon out from the off.
It was through one such opportunity that Smith found herself closing in on goal after just a few minutes, only for the cross to take a deflection and bounce out to the edge of the penalty area.
‘Shoot!’ was the rallying call from the Arsenal crowd as Caitlin Foord closed in, only for the Australian winger to drag her shot wide of Christiane Endler’s right post.
Lyon didn’t need telling twice: the reigning champions were up for this one.
What followed were 15 minutes or so of Arsenal dominance, as their typically boisterous crowd bristled with excitement.
After all, last year’s success in this tournament after 18 years had shed the cloak of insecurity. Despite not winning a league title in seven years, they had beaten Europe’s best teams all the way to Lisbon, and they could easily do it again.
Or so they thought – until Lyon midfielder Jule Brand decided to burst the bubble of growing confidence in the stadium.
Lyon midfielder Jule Brand decided to burst the bubble of growing confidence in the stadium with her goal against the run of play in the 18th minute
Capitalising on a loose pass from Caitlin Foord to Olivia Smith, Brand drove towards the Arsenal penalty area, sidestepped Kim Little, and fired into the bottom left-hand corner. Arsenal had fallen asleep for a moment and were punished.
The noise evaporated from the stadium into the sticky London afternoon.
As the time ticked along and into the second half, Arsenal’s lack of attacking threat grew. Chloe Kelly and Beth Mead were both absent from the bench, and Renee Slegers, dressed casually in an Adidas Arsenal T-shirt and tracksuit bottoms, appeared lost in thought on the sidelines.
Fortunately for the hosts, they managed to get a helping hand to level the tie with just over half an hour to go.
Katie McCabe was dragged down 20 yards out, and Mariona Caldentey’s resulting free-kick saw the Spaniard send a low, bobbling pass into the penalty area.
Arsenal’s Champions League hero, Stina Blackstenius, rushed forward to attack the ball, but Endler made a mess of it as she bent down to scoop it up. It squirmed out of her grasp and bounced over the line.
VAR checked to see if Blackstenius had interfered, but the Lyon keeper couldn’t save her blushes on this occasion, and parity was restored.
Lyon responded through Kadidiatou Diani, who rattled Arsenal with a powerful effort a few minutes later.
Then the momentum swung back Arsenal’s way. Foord had a shot caught under her feet, and Endler parried it away.
Finally, though, Smith’s relentlessness was rewarded. The Canadian closed down Endler, who collided with her own player, and Smith scrambled to her feet to guide her shot into the empty net.
The relief was palpable, but Slegers and her players will be under no illusions that this job is only half done.