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Matildas make their way to Champions League quarters

Staff WritersAP
Hammarby's Cathinka Tandberg (l) and City's Alanna Kennedy fight for possession in their WCL tie. (EPA PHOTO)
Camera IconHammarby's Cathinka Tandberg (l) and City's Alanna Kennedy fight for possession in their WCL tie. (EPA PHOTO) Credit: AAP

The Matildas will boast a strong representation in the quarter-finals of the Women's Champions League after wins for Manchester City and Arsenal on Thursday.

Khadija Shaw scored twice for City in their 2-1 victory at Swedish club Hammarby, while Arsenal booked their spot with a 1-0 win over Juventus thanks to an 89th minute goal from substitute Lina Hurtig.

City stayed perfect in the competition with four victories and reached the last eight for the first time since 2021, with two games to spare in Group D.

They are joined by Chelsea, Australian coach Joe Montemurro's Lyon, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Arsenal and Barcelona in the quarter-finals.

Bayern Munich were held 1-1 at V?lerenga in Norway, but advanced after the Gunners' win over Juventus.

The London club started with Matildas duo Caitlin Foord up front and Steph Catley at the back, while young Kyra Cooney-Cross was an unused substitute.

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Foord was in the thick of the action, claiming a penalty after going down under a challenge from Paulina Krumbiegel only for the referee to wave play on.

The livewire winger also burst clear on the left side of the penalty area and cut the ball back across the face of goal, but there was no-one arriving in the six-yard box for what would have been a tap-in.

Hurtig's late goal, however, was enough to secure qualification for interim head coach Renee Slegers' team.

City lead Group D with 12 points, three more than two-time defending champions Barcelona, who thumped Austrian club St P?lten 4-1 on Thursday.

Bayern top Group C with 10 points, Arsenal have nine followed by Juventus (3) and V?lerenga (1).

Man City, with Matilda Alanna Kennedy stationed at the heart of defence and compatriot Mary Fowler up front, were responding to their first loss of the season - a 2-0 defeat at Chelsea in the Women's Super League on Saturday.

Still without injured star Vivianne Miedema, Shaw took charge, proving her scoring instincts after half an hour.

The forward scored from inside the penalty area with a deflected shot that flew over goalkeeper Anna Tamminen to frustrate more than 20,000 noisy fans at the Stockholm Arena in the Swedish capital.

Ellen Wangerheim equalised soon after the interval from close range to rejuvenate the crowd, but Shaw struck again to restore the lead just minutes later.

This time, she delivered a powerful right-footed finish from the edge of the area.

Bayern dominated possession but could not translate it into goals until the 75th minute. They had to rely on substitute Jovana Damnjanovi?, who gave the visitors a late lead after connecting on a pass from Giulia Gwinn.

The Norwegians, who have retained their domestic title, equalised in the 88th through Elise Thorsnes' header following a corner.

Pernille Harder, who found the back of the net five times for Bayern in the previous three games, could not do it again on Thursday and was substituted.

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