UWCL: Chelsea hands Barcelona its first defeat of the 2023/24 season

It was a historic day for Chelsea's women in the UEFA Women's Champions League, they handed Barcelona Femeni their first defeat of the 2023/24 season.

Despite being the least favourite to win the match, Chelsea put up a great performance against the Spanish side, who had not lost a game across all competitions this season and were yet to lose any match at home since 2019 before the semi-final game.

Barcelona had previously beaten Chelsea 4-0 in the 2021 final of the competition and defeated them at the same stage last year (2023) with the Spanish side winning the game 2-1 on aggregate over two legs. However, Chelsea had a major return to their starting lineup with Lauren James after she missed their WSL win over Aston Villa in midweek, while Barcelona had Keira Walsh back in the midfield.

Chelsea took the lead in the 40th minute, as Erin Cuthbert struck a stunning effort, ensuring they went into the break ahead. Although Barcelona thought they had a chance to equalise, an initial penalty decision was overturned by VAR.

Chelsea now go into the second leg on Saturday, April 27, 2024, with a goal advantage over Barcelona.