Lyon-BK Häcken | Champions League, Lyon-Häcken, presentation | UEFA Women’s Champions League
Lyon, who qualified for the quarter-finals of the UEFA Women’s Champions League by defeating Benfica on Matchday 5, aim for victory in Group D by welcoming a team from Häcken who did not managed to climb into the top two on the final day.
• The Lyonnaises had a comfortable success in the return leg of the first day, Melvine Malard (10th minute) scoring the group’s first goal in this inaugural season. Catarina Macario (48th) and a self-defeating goal from Stine Larsen (53rd) completed the scoreboard.
• Les Fenottes are one of four teams, along with Barcelona, Bayern and Paris, to have won all of their group matches at home; Häcken’s only Group D success came on the road, in a 1-0 win over Benfica on Matchday 3.
• Lyon won the group beats Häcken or if Bayern does not beat Benfica. If Bayern win and Lyon draw, they share the first place on goal difference.
Players to watch
Lyonnais
Delphine Cascarino
• The 24-year-old provided crosses on Ada Hegerberg’s two goals in the 5-0 win over Benfica on Matchday 5.
• The midfielder, who made his Lyon debut in March 2015, has won this competition five times, appearing in the last three finals won by Les Fenottes.
• The French international was part of two successful Les Bleues youth teams, recalling the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in 2012 and the UEFA European Women’s Under-19 Championship four years later.
• Cascarino’s twin sister Estelle is a former Lyon defender who joined Paris Saint-Germain in July, after passing through Paris FC and Bordeaux.
Ada hegerberg
• The 26-year-old scored twice against Benfica on December 9 – her first European goals since October 2019.
• Hegerberg, whose total of 55 goals in the competition is above (record) scoring 14 in his last ten appearances in the competition.
• The striker made her comeback after a serious injury as a 78th-minute substitute in Matchday 1’s victory in Gothenburg, her first appearance in 625 days due to a ruptured cruciate ligament in Göteborg. a knee and a stress fracture of the left tibia.
• The former Norway international netted a triple in the 2019 final triumph over Barcelona, making her the second only player to score three goals in the competition final after Inka Grings for Duisburg a decade earlier.
Melvine Malard
• The 21-year-old scored the first but historic group in Matchday 1’s 3-0 win over Häcken on 5 October.
• Nine days later Malard scored against Benfica and was one of six players to find the net in the first two days.
• The forward is Fenottes’ top scorer in the UEFA Women’s Champions League this year with three goals tied with Catarina Macario.
• Malard’s seven goals in this competition, qualifying includes, have been scored in his last 13 outings.
Häcken
Stina Blackstenius
• Returning from injury, the 25-year-old striker gave his side a fine finish in the Matchday 5 loss to Bayern.
• Blackstenius’ goal against last season’s semi-finalists was his first in the group stage, and came on his eighth shot of the Group D campaign.
• The forward ended Damallsvenskan’s season as the division’s top scorer with 17 goals, three more than her closest rival, her tally comprising three trebles.
• The Swedish international spent two years in France with Montpellier (2017-19), vice-champion of the Women’s Division 1 behind Lyon during her first campaign.
Jennifer falk
• The 28-year-old made several saves in the first half when her side lost to Lyon on Matchday 1
• Jennifer Falk made 27 saves in the group stage, only three goalies made more.
• The goalkeeper has been playing for Häcken since the start of the 2016 season after joining the club from Mallbackens IF, having played in Sweden’s third and fourth division.
• The Swedish international was a promising tennis player in her youth, but was forced to give up the sport due to recurring shoulder injuries.
Stine Larsen
• The 25-year-old provided the smart pass for Blackstenius’ opener against Bayern on Matchday 5, Häcken’s group opening goal on open play.
• The striker, who scored home on Matchday 1 against Lyon, scored on the right on her debut for Häcken, in the 3-1 Damallsvenskan victory at Kristianstads on 25 August.
• Larsen joined the club this summer after a season in England with Women’s Super League club Aston Villa.
• The Danish international was a finalist in the UEFA Women’s EURO in 2017, a tournament where she spent the last stages playing defense due to injuries.
Key statistics
• Lyon have lost just two of their last 39 Champions League games.
• The French team have won 19 of their last 21 European matches.
• Lyon have won in 15 of their last 16 home matches in the UEFA Women’s Champions League.
• The Fenottes have not failed to score only once in their last 31 European games.
• OL haven’t conceded a goal in their last four UEFA Women’s Champions League games against Swedish clubs.
• Häcken have lost only two of their last ten away games in all competitions.