Olympique Lyonnais Out To Avenge Ghosts Of Stamford Bridge In Champions League

In 2013, the reigning European champions, Olympique Lyonnais relinquished their title in the UEFA Champions League losing the final to VfL Wolfsburg at Stamford Bridge in London, now a decade on, the holders could once again be dethroned at the home of Chelsea FC.

After losing the first leg of their quarter-final tie to a single goal by Guro Reiten, the eight-times champions must win away to Chelsea to have any hope of staying in the competition. Lyon have not been eliminated from the women’s Champions League by foreign opposition in ten years since a Round of 16 elimination to German side, Turbine Potsdam.

The current Lyon coach, Sonia Bompastor was the captain of the French side in 2013, having lifted the trophy in the previous two seasons. Following their shock defeat to the German side, playing their first season in European football, Bompastor retired from the game to take up a position in the club’s academy.

Following eight years in that role, Bompastor went on to take the head coach role in 2021, becoming the first female manager to win a Champions League title since 2009 at the end of her first season. However on Thursday night, it is likely Lyon will have to score at least twice to make the semi-finals in the competition they have won an incredible eight times in thirteen seasons.

Having just this month signed a contract extension until 2026, Bompastor’s immediate future is not under threat but following that defeat in 2013, it took Lyon another three years to reach another final. The fear is that this great, but ageing team, may be forced to rebuild once more should they be eliminated from the competition by foreign opposition for the first time since November 2013.

Speaking at the pre-match press conference, sitting in the same seat, she occupied before the 2013 final, Bompastor reflected on that experience. “10 years already? It’s really flown by! I’ve got contrasting feelings really. Bittersweet memories. First of all, I was proud to represent Lyon in such an important final, my last game for the club in such an important and historic stadium. That was tinged with sadness, because we lost on a penalty to Wolfsburg.”

I asked her whether her players were motivated by talk of this Lyon team coming to end of a cycle. “When you represent a club like Lyon who have won the most honors in the world game, you kind of get used to this noise that comes around each year, ‘is it the end?'”

“Last year we played Barcelona in the final, and they were big favorites to win. We managed to prevail on that occasion. This is a special group of players, they’re very experienced, they’ve achieved a lot. I know going into tomorrow, they will be full of positive energy and be really focused on the task ahead. We know what we want to do and we know we are capable of doing it as well.”

The Chelsea manager Emma Hayes coached Bompastor during her time at Washington Freedom. She told me she remembered her well. “Wow, what a brilliant player, honestly an unbelievable left-back with an unbelievable wand of a left boot. I managed to coach her in a team that had (Homore) Sawa and Abby Wambach. Just a cultured and brilliant footballer. Very quiet, cheeky, funny – the media might not always see that about her.”

“It’s of no surprise to me that her and (her assistant coach) Camille (Abily) are working together. I said to her at the end of the game when it ended last week ‘that’s Round One, I’ll see you back at Stamford Bridge next week’. Listen, this will be a tough match and we both have a lot of respect for each other and it’s one I’m looking forward to.”