Mariona Caldentey scored a late penalty to send Arsenal through to the Women’s Champions League quarter-finals as Group C winners with a 3-2 victory over Bayern Munich that reflects their “big belief” in the competition says interim boss Renee Slegers.
Slegers’ side knew three points would see them leapfrog Bayern and top the group, giving them a better seeding in the draw for the last eight.
The Gunners took a seventh-minute lead at Meadow Park – the fixture moved from the Emirates Stadium because of a clash with the men’s Carabao Cup quarter-final – through Glodis Perla Viggosdottir’s own goal.
Magdalena Eriksson equalised for Bayern before the break when she smashed home at a corner and then put her side ahead in the second half, stretching to turn in Giulia Gwinn’s cross.
However, Bayern’s lead lasted less than 60 seconds as Alessia Russo volleyed in from a corner.
Arsenal needed a winner and were given a chance when Tuva Hansen handled an effort from Caldentey with four minutes remaining. Caldentey stepped up to the spot and coolly dispatched the penalty to extend Arsenal’s unbeaten run to 11 matches across all competitions.
After the game, Slegers was asked if Arsenal could beat anyone remaining in the competition and she said: “I think so.
“We have a top squad, it demands a lot of work. We’ve had so many challenges over the last couple of months but many times we came out positive from those challenges.
“The team has shown real grit and resilience in combination with quality players and a clear idea of how we want to play football, I think we can go really far.
“We have a big respect for the other sides in the competition, there’s so many teams in Europe that do great things but we have a big belief in ourselves.”
Group winners are seeded in the draw for the last eight. The draw takes place on February 7, with ties played on March 18-19 and 26-27.
Group winners:
Runners-up:
