Ibrahim Oladamola
Caroline Graham Hansen’s fine strike saw Barcelona take a slim 1-0 lead in their Women’s Champions League semi-final against Chelsea, as Lucy Bronze hobbled off with injury.
The two sides met for the first time since Barcelona’s 4-0 win in the 2021 Champions League final, and looked to be on the verge of another victory as Graham Hansen smashed home the opener inside four minutes.
But Chelsea responded well in the first half at Stamford Bridge. Guro Reiten thought she had equalised as she turned home in the 25th minute, but the offside flag was correctly raised against Sam Kerr in the build-up.
Barcelona dominated the second period – hitting the post late on – and take a slender advantage into Thursday’s second leg at the Nou Camp.
However, there will be real concerns for Bronze, who went down mid-way through the half clutching her knee. She later reappeared on the bench with ice around her knee and was walking around the pitch with her team-mates at full-time.
