Barcelona secured a crucial 1-0 victory over Chelsea in the first leg of their Women's Champions League semi-final clash, in front of a record crowd of 27,697 at Stamford Bridge. The Spanish side took an early lead thanks to Caroline Graham Hansen's stunning long-range effort in the fourth minute of the game, which proved to be the only goal of the match.
Despite conceding an early goal, Chelsea fought back and created chances for Guro Reiten and Sam Kerr. The Blues were eager to avoid a repeat of their 4-0 loss to Barcelona in the 2021 Champions League final, and they showed great resilience and determination to keep the scoreline close.
Barcelona continued to dominate possession and press for another goal in the second half, but suffered a setback when defender Lucy Bronze was forced off with a knee injury. However, Barcelona coach Jonatan Giráldez later confirmed that the injury wasn't serious and that Bronze would be fine.
After the match, Giráldez praised his team's performance and said that they did an "amazing job" against a tough Chelsea side. He also acknowledged that there was still a lot of work to do in the second leg, which will be played at Camp Nou on April 27.
Chelsea manager Emma Hayes was proud of her team's efforts and said that they had given their "maximum" on the night. She also urged her players to learn from their mistakes and improve ahead of the second leg.
Overall, Barcelona will be pleased with their performance and will look to finish the job in the second leg. Meanwhile, Chelsea will be hoping to overturn the deficit and book their place in the final of the Women's Champions League.