Ellie Carpenter’s Lyon team claims fifth-straight Champions League crown, beating Wolfsburg
Lyon have won the women’s UEFA Champions League for a record seventh time and for the fifth year running with a 3-1 win over Wolfsburg.
The imperious French side excelled in the first half, taking a two-goal lead through Eugenie Le Sommer and Saki Kumagai, before defending well to stop a valiant Wolfsburg from forcing the game to extra-time.
Alex Popp headed home for the German side but they could not break down Lyon’s tight defence a second time.
Carpenter, who was an unused substitute in the final, moved to the French giants in June, a move that has instantly paid off in terms of silverware.
The victory confirmed the 20-year-old Matildas star has joined a powerhouse club, and should she be able to force her way into the starting XI, there will likely be plenty more silverware to come.
The French side beat Wolfsburg in the 2016 and 2018 finals and also eliminated them in 2017 and 2019, making this an uphill struggle from the start for the Germans.
Lyon were by far the better side in the early stages and their pressure told when Le Sommer broke the deadlock in the 25th minute.
Gunnarsdottir, who previously played for Wolfsburg, steered Le Sommer’s off-target strike home to seal the victory in the 87th minute and spark wild celebrations at full-time.
The match finally brought the extended 2019-20 European season to an end for both men’s and women’s football, a day after England’s top teams competed in the 2020-21 Community Shield fixtures.
