In front of a large home crowd, the VfL Wolfsburg footballers confidently made it into the semi-finals of the Champions League.
Coach Tommy Stroot’s team beat Arsenal 2-0 (1-0) in the second leg of the quarter-finals and, after the 1-1 draw in the first leg, can now continue to dream of their third trophy in the premier class. In the round of the top four, the Wolfsburg team will face defending champions FC Barcelona.
In front of 11,293 spectators in the VW Arena, otherwise the home ground of the VfL men, former Arsenal player Jill Roord (9th) and Leah Williamson (73rd) scored for the Wolfsburg women, who are now on 23./24. April and meet Barcelona a week later. The Spanish top team only set new standards on Wednesday with the premier class home game in front of the world record crowd of 91,553 spectators at the Camp Nou. Playing there one day is a “goal in the back of your mind,” said national goalkeeper Almuth Schult.
Playing in the big stadiums is “very important” for women’s football, and playing the second leg of the quarter-finals in the VW Arena was also Schult’s “personal wish”: “The atmosphere is something special.”
Arsenal only threaten Wolfsburg for a short time
Three days before the Bundesliga summit against champions Bayern Munich (2:00 p.m.), which failed on Wednesday at Paris St. Germain, Wolfsburg were the game-determining team there with their own fans behind them in the early stages. Roord rewarded the hosts’ offensive efforts right from the start. In front of the eyes of national coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg and some VfL players, the Wolfsburg women didn’t give up and repeatedly came dangerously towards the opposing penalty area.
A little later the ball landed back in the net after a shot by Tabea Waßmuth, but she was ruled offside. Arsenal could hardly get out of their own half, and the Wolfsburg defense was there for the rare attempts. Schult safely parried Steph Catley’s shot (33′). But Svenja Huth (35th) also failed because of Arsenal goalkeeper Manuela Zinsberger.
Even after the break, Wolfsburg initially had the game under control and continued to look for a way forward. But Arsenal became more and more dangerous, but could not use the opportunities efficiently at first. The hostesses, on the other hand, tried to control the game better again. Williamson finally steered the ball into his own goal and thus extended Wolfsburg’s lead.