Eintracht women fight back to 1:1 draw against Paris Saint-Germain in Champions League qualifying

After an evenly balanced first half, an open exchange with chances at both ends developed after the break. Paris Saint-Germain, coached by Niko Arnautis, looked composed on the ball and repeatedly put the Frankfurt defense under pressure, but the Hessians battled back and looked to find relief in quick transition moments.

Match action at the Brentanobad

The Frankfurt women managed to keep the game open for long stretches, even though Paris showed the finer footballing quality. Coach Niko Arnautis, who had managed the Frankfurt team before his move to PSG, visibly found ways to cause problems for the Frankfurt defense.

In the closing stages, space opened up increasingly for the Frankfurt women through counterattacks involving Hanna Bennison and Naomie Feller. The two attacking players were among the most noticeable performers of the match and provided relief with their runs at pace. Still, it was not enough for a second goal.

Situation heading into the second leg

With the 1:1 in hand, Arnautis's team now travels to Paris on 2 September, where the decision on advancing to the group stage will be made. The first leg on Wednesday evening had thus unfolded in a way that is likely to give the Frankfurt women confidence for the return fixture.

The situation before the second leg is clearly defined: with an away win or a higher-scoring draw with enough away goals, Frankfurt would progress to the next round. A goalless draw or a defeat would end the Champions League dream.

Previous path in qualifying

Alongside this fixture, Eintracht Frankfurt had already kicked off the qualifying campaign with a respectable result against Inter Milan before now facing the French side. The Frankfurt women have thereby shown in the current qualifying phase that they can compete even against top-level opponents.

For coach Arnautis and his team, the 1:1 means a focused and tactically disciplined performance will be needed in the second leg to avoid squandering the narrow advantage from the first leg. The squad possessed the quality to come through away from home as well, it was said from the Frankfurt camp after the game.

Looking ahead to the next task

Should Frankfurt clear the Paris hurdle, the club would move into the group stage of the premier competition and face the European elite there. The group stage draw and the further qualifying rounds will take place after the third round is completed.

Despite the draw, there is optimism in the Frankfurt camp looking ahead to the second leg. The team had shown it can keep pace with the top sides and would head into the second match with confidence, it was said.

The second leg on 2 September will show whether the Frankfurt women can actually book their place in the group stage or whether Paris Saint-Germain can use its home strength to turn the tie around.