The FC Bayern women travel to Arsenal WFC in London at the end of the Champions League group phase. The game could be groundbreaking for Munich and their entire season in Europe.
It’s a small final, the first real one this season. The FC Bayern women can practice for the important weeks in the spring of this season on Wednesday evening from 9 p.m. at Arsenal WFC in London. Ultimately, the Munich team want to finish first in their Champions League Group C. “I want a win tomorrow,” said England international Georgia Stanway at the pre-match press conference when asked about her Christmas wish.
The FCB women were last in a Champions League semi-final in 2021
There is a plausible reason for this. Only with a win or a draw will the Munich women (13 points) defend their lead in Group C over the London women, who are currently lurking one point behind. The game could therefore be a game-changer for the entire season in Europe. The group winners will each face a group runner-up in the quarter-finals.
If in doubt, the latter are likely to be the slightly easier opponents – even if Munich coach Alexander Straus says: “It will be extremely difficult in the quarter-finals either way.” The last time the Munich team reached a semi-final was in 2021 under Straus’ predecessor Jens Scheuer; they have never reached the final in the competition. “It is a difficult group that we have managed,” Straus wants to say first of all.
In October, FCB beat Arsenal 5-2 – a lot has changed since then
But of course he also wants to win the group, which he emphasized in the press conference on Tuesday afternoon. Positive for the Munich team: They already beat Arsenal 5-2 in their first group game in October. So you know how to deal with the English women. But as we all know, every coin has two sides: today’s arsenal no longer has much in common with what it was back then.
Because in October Jonas Eidevall was still on the sidelines as coach, today Renée Slegers coaches the Londoners. And the 35-year-old Dutchwoman has brought England’s top team back on the road to success.
The team has not lost since Slegers became Arsenal coach
“They looked really good, played really well in the last few weeks,” observed Munich coach Straus. “The game is in a completely different context than the first leg.” Since Slegers took over on October 15, Arsenal have not lost a game, won nine and drawn once.
“That’s what we want. We want to be challenged at this level. We know we have the quality to be able to hurt them.” Midfielder Stanway made similar comments before the duel with the 2023 semi-finalists: “It’s a game in which we can show again where we stand, how good we are.”
Straus also sees his Munich team in a better position
You and Straus are playing into the cards so that almost all of the players can travel with you to London. In this respect, Arsenal will also face an even stronger FC Bayern than last in this small final, Straus expects: “The team looks better than it has for a long time in the last two years.”
So it’s quite possible that Georgia Stanway will be able to fulfill her Christmas wish on Wednesday.
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Source: BR24Sport December 17, 2024 – 6:30 p.m
