Salma Paralluelo scored the only goal of the game as Barcelona edged Roma 1-0 at the Stadio Olimpico in the quarter-finals of the Women's Champions League.
The 19-year-old curled a left-footed effort from outside the box to beat Camelia Ceasar after 34 minutes, after the Roma goalkeeper had frustrated the visitors with a number of fine saves.
Last season's runners-up could not extend their advantage in the second half, while Roma failed to convert a number of chances in the latter stages to pull the tie level.
??????
It's advantage Barcelona after a narrow win in Rome #UWCL
— UEFA Women’s Champions League (@UWCL) March 21, 2023
Elsewhere, Arsenal were frustrated at Allianz Arena by Bayern Munich and suffered a 1-0 loss despite dominating proceedings.
The Gunners saw efforts from Stina Blackstenius and Leah Williamson cleared off the line as they peppered the hosts' goal with 25 shots – though only six were on target.
Lea Schuller's 39th-minute header proved decisive, with Jonas Eidevall's side needing a turnaround in the second leg if they are to reach the semi-finals for the first time in a decade.
Barcelona seized control of Group D in the Women's Champions League by thrashing Bayern Munich 3-0 in front of a crowd of 46,967 – a new group-stage record.
Second-half goals from Geyse, Aitana Bonmati and Claudia Pina helped Jonatan Giraldez's team maintain their perfect record in the competition on Thursday, as well as ending that of Bayern.
The Camp Nou crowd – which surpassed the competition's previous group-stage record of 18,341 by a considerable margin – had to remain patient for the opener, but the Blaugrana were good value for their win after Brazil international Geyse broke the deadlock.
The result moved Barca three points clear of their opponents as well as maintaining their six-point advantage over Benfica, who beat Rosengard 1-0 courtesy of Cloe Lacasse's goal.
Meanwhile, Arsenal maintained their narrow lead at the top of Group C with a 1-1 draw against Juventus, who remain two points behind the Gunners after surrendering a second-half lead.
Lineth Beerensteyn put the hosts ahead shortly after the break, but fellow Netherlands international Vivianne Miedema nodded home from a corner nine minutes later to keep the visitors top.
Reigning champions Lyon also remain in fierce contention for a quarter-final spot after cruising to a 3-0 win at Zurich, moving them to within a point of second-placed Juve.
Signe Bruun added two goals after Melvine Malard headed in an early opener, helping the eight-time champions to their first Champions League win of the season.
Goals from Sophie Ingle and Erin Cuthbert put Chelsea on the verge of qualification from Group A of the Women's Champions League as they beat Real Madrid 2-0 on Wednesday.
A drab contest at Kingsmeadow came to life after 67 minutes as Ingle got on the end of a Millie Bright flick from a corner to head home, before Cuthbert's cross from the right flew straight in past the helpless Misa Rodriguez to double the hosts' advantage just four minutes later.
The win means Chelsea maintain their 100 per cent record from three games, sitting five points ahead of Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain, who thrashed Vllaznia 5-0 to record their first victory of the campaign.
PSG eased to the win against their Albanian opponents thanks to goals from Grace Geyoro, a Matilda Gjergji own goal, a Ramona Bachmann penalty, Sandy Baltimore and substitute Magnaba Folquet.
In Group B, Roma took an early lead against Wolfsburg through Valentina Giacinti, before Ewa Pajor equalised for the visitors – her fourth Champions League goal in three games – to share the spoils.
St. Polten won their first points of this year's competition with a hard-fought 1-0 win at Slavia Prague, with Maria Mikolajova scoring a sensational 91st-minute winner for the Austrians.
"I decided to shoot at the very last moment," Mikolajova said after the game. "I was thinking about passing the ball, but made the right decision. It is hard to describe how I felt when the ball went in because it's a very important win."
That leaves Slavia Prague bottom with zero points, three behind St. Polten, while Wolfsburg and Roma remain clear at the top with seven each at the halfway point of the group stage.
Sam Kerr scored four goals as Chelsea crushed Vllaznia 8-0 in the Women's Champions League on Wednesday, maintaining their perfect start in Group A.
Pernille Harder also struck a hat-trick and Katerina Svitkova headed home late on as the Blues followed up last week's impressive win over Paris Saint-Germain with a dominant display at Kingsmeadow.
Kerr needed just an hour to hit the net four times, finishing from close range on three occasions as well as converting Guro Reiten's corner with a towering header.
Chelsea now hold a two-point advantage at the top of their group after Real Madrid played out a lively 0-0 draw with Paris Saint-Germain at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano.
In Group B, Wolfsburg recorded their second win in as many games as goals from Jule Brand and Ewa Pajor helped them to a 2-0 success against Slavia Prague.
However, the two-time Champions League winners look set to be pushed all the way by tournament debutants Roma after they triumphed 4-3 in a remarkable meeting with St. Polten.
Alessandro Spugna's Giallorosse were 2-0 down with 15 minutes to play, but held firm after goals from Elena Linari, Valentina Giacinti, Manuela Giugliano and Paloma Lazaro turned the contest around to move onto six points.
Chelsea got their Women's Champions League campaign off to a winning start against last season's semi-finalists Paris Saint-Germain on Thursday.
The Blues, under the caretaker guidance of Denise Reddy amid Emma Hayes' medical absence, beat the two-time finalists at the Stade Jean-Bouin thanks to Millie Bright's first-half volley in a 1-0 triumph.
The England international turned Erin Cuthbert's looping cross home with an impressive touch just under half-an-hour in, before turning in an impressive defensive performance to frustrate the hosts in Group A.
They were joined by Real Madrid in victory, as the Spanish side claimed a comfortable 2-0 win on the road against Albanian outfit Vllaznia, thanks to goals from Esther Gonzalez and Olga Carmona.
Italy forward Valentina Giacinti meanwhile gave tournament debutants Roma a bright start to life in Europe's top club competition after her effort saw the hosts pick up a 1-0 win over Slavia Prague in Latina in Group B.
Wolfsburg also kicked off with three points, inflicting the heaviest defeat of the night on St. Polten with a 4-0 victory driven by Ewa Pajor's double inside the opening quarter-hour.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
