For the first time in the history of a UEFA women’s club competition, two teams from the same city will face each other as Arsenal host Chelsea at the Emirates. In the first leg of the Women’s Champions League quarter-finals on Tuesday evening.
Chelsea arrived at this stage having finished third in the league phase and qualifying automatically. Sonia Bompastor’s side ended the group stage unbeaten, recording four wins and two draws, and finished joint-top with Barcelona for goals scored with 20, while also boasting the joint-best defensive record with just three conceded.
Arsenal, by contrast, finished fifth and were required to negotiate a play-off tie against OH Leuven. Which they did comfortably, winning 7-1 on aggregate. Alessia Russo scored three times across the two legs to move clear as the competition’s overall top scorer with seven goals. However, the club with the competition's top goalscorer has historically not won the trophy.
The two sides are already well acquainted this season. Their WSL meetings saw Arsenal draw 1-1 at home to Chelsea on 8 November, a game full of controversial decisions and complaints about the lack of VAR. Something that is not an issue in the Champions League
Arsenal claimed a 2-0 victory away at Stamford Bridge on 24 January, results that reflected the Gunners’ improved form following a mixed autumn. This was their first WSL win at Chelsea since October 2018 and became the first WSL side to beat Chelsea at the Bridge.
Chelsea nonetheless go into this tie on the back of domestic silverware, having retained the Women’s League Cup.
That success came amid a challenging defensive period, with Ellie Carpenter away at the SheBelieves Cup and Millie Bright out injured. Kadeisha Buchanan is making her first start since November 2024 in the final. Nathalie Björn was forced off just minutes into her own return from injury and is now unlikely to appear again this season. Aggie Beever-Jones remains a doubt after being forced off against London City, although the Chelsea head coach has not ruled her out. “We are assessing her, we will assess her tomorrow,” Bompastor said. “There is still a chance for her to be available for the game, so we’ll make the final decision tomorrow.”
Bompastor played down concerns after a lightly attended open training session on Monday, which only had eight outfield players, explaining, “When you are playing a lot of games and having quick turnarounds, a lot of players are doing individual programmes. Everything is under control, and we will have enough players to play the game tomorrow. Don’t worry.” She joked that they were playing World 7s, which was unofficially announced as being hosted in London and reportedly featuring only WSL clubs.
Squad availability remains a major talking point ahead of the quarter-final, with both teams affected by injuries and international commitments.
Several players will definitely miss the first leg due to their involvement in the AFC Asian Women’s Cup final, where Australia were beaten 1-0 by Japan in Sydney. Arsenal’s Steph Catley, Kyra Cooney-Cross and Caitlin Foord, along with Chelsea’s Sam Kerr and Ellie Carpenter, were all involved in that match and will not be available for the first leg.
Chelsea have also been without Kerr and Carpenter since late February due to the tournament, with Bompastor confirming it is highly unlikely either will feature after their late return.
Arsenal also have fitness concerns of their own. Leah Williamson is set to miss the match as she continues to recover from a hamstring issue, while Olivia Smith was also absent from MD-1 open training. However, manager Renee Slegers provided clarity that certain players were following their individual programmes due to the short turnaround from their weekend fixture. Midfielder Frida Maanum, however, could return to the matchday squad after sitting out Saturday’s win through illness.
Chelsea’s defensive options are particularly stretched, with Carpenter, Björn and captain Millie Bright all unavailable.
That leaves Bompastor facing a decision between introducing youth or relying on experience, with teenager Chloe Saville impressing on her first Chelsea start against London City Lionesses at the weekend. At the same time, Lucy Bronze offers a more predictable, seasoned alternative. Naomi Girma is available for the game after a minor issue with the USWNT. Chelsea could start Buchanan, but they will want to manage her return from ACL as much as possible,e given other injuries in defence, as she was thrown into the deep end on her return.
Chelsea’s last outing saw them field their youngest starting XI since 2013 as they managed a workload ahead of this fixture, drawing 1-1 away to London City Lionesses.
That result dropped them to third in the WSL table, one point behind Manchester United and two points ahead of Arsenal, who have two games in hand, as Chelsea sees a seventh WSL title in a row go by, and fears grow that they will not qualify for next season's Champions League.
The Blues have now failed to win two of their last three away league matches, although they have lost just one of their 14 competitive away games this season and are unbeaten on their last two visits to the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal come into the tie in a buoyant mood after a commanding 5-0 home victory over West Ham United on Saturday. Chloe Kelly scored a hat-trick, secured a ninth consecutive win in all competitions and boosted their hopes of a top-three WSL finish. Renée Slegers’s side now turn their full attention to Europe, looking to beat Chelsea for the second time in 2026 and take a first-leg advantage in this historic all-London quarter-final. Renee Slegers has not lost a single home game in the WSL since becoming Arsenal manager in January 2025. This makes her the first manager in WSL History to stay unbeaten in each of their first 16 home matches, overtaking Sonia Bompastor's 15 and setting a new league record
Slegers acknowledged the challenge posed by Chelsea, pointing to their long-standing consistency and quality, while also highlighting the unpredictability of the tie given the short turnaround and absences on both sides. She stressed the importance of control, decision-making, and managing momentum over the 90 minutes, while embracing the atmosphere of playing a Champions League quarter-final at the Emirates.
Slegers spoke warmly about playing at the Emirates, highlighting the importance of the occasion. “We love to play at the Emirates, of course. It’s a special stadium, it’s a special atmosphere, and so many fans. We want to bring energy to the way we play,, and we know the fans are always bringing us energy as well.
We look forward to this occasion, and it’s part of the draw that we will play at home first.”
On Chelsea, she added, “If you look at Chelsea and what they’ve been doing, I think they’ve been excellent at doing that for a very long time. All teams go through phases. If I look at their team and their squad, they have a lot of quality. So we’re very prepared to play against a very good team tomorrow at Emirates.” She also stressed the tactical challenge ahead, saying, “There is an unpredictability with how Chelsea are going to come out and how they’re going to play this first game, what shape they’ll play in, what players they’ll have available. So we’ll just have to be ready for all scenarios.”
She also emphasised Arsenal’s mentality in big matches, saying, “It’s one of our strengths. We know we’re at our very, very best when we're task-oriented. The passion and fire will be there anyway, because we’re playing a Champions League quarter-final against Chelsea.”
Chelsea, meanwhile, head into the knockout rounds with ambitions of going all the way to Oslo to lift their first Women’s Champions League trophy and add to the League Cup they have already secured this season. With the league title now out of reach, European success takes on added significance, setting the stage for a finely balanced first leg between two rivals separated by little more than fine margins.
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