Women’s Soccer Round Up: Arsenal are Continental Cup champions

In England, Stina Blackstenius’ extra time goal painted London red on Sunday while in Spain, Luis Rubiales’ troubles continued. All that and more as we look at what happened in the world of women’s soccer this past week.

Arsenal’s jubilation and sorrow mark the Continental Cup final

After a long, tough battle between two of the top teams in the FA WSL, Arsenal came out on top in the League Cup final. With neither side gaining the breakthrough in normal time, it took Stina Blackstenius to find the back of the net in the 115th minute to gain a hard-earned victory for the red side of North London.

The goal came as a massive release of emotion for all those associated with Arsenal as earlier on, Frida Maanum had collapsed off the ball and left many worried about her health. After the whistle blew at 90 minutes, her teammates were informed that she was conscious and breathing which undoubtedly buoyed them on the win. The win stopped Chelsea’s march to a historic quadruple while also giving Arsenal their second successive win against Chelsea in the same competition.

Luis Rubiales could spend 30 months in jail

Spanish prosecutors have charged former Spanish FA president Luis Rubiales with one count of sexual assault and one of coercion in the aftermath of the kiss (that occurred at the World Cup final). The charges for Luis Rubiales would see him in jail for two and half years if convicted.

Rubiales, whose troubles have continued since causing outrage and national debate in Spain due to his actions, maintains his innocence and continues to state that what occurred between he and Jenni Hermoso was consensual. While no one other that his ardent supporters and his family agree with his stance, it remains to be seen if the Spanish courts feel the same way.

UWCL semi finals are set

FC Barcelona, Chelsea FC, Olympique Lyonnais and Paris Saint-Germain are all set to play in the UEFA Women’s Champions League semi-finals. Chelsea saw off Ajax and Lyon were tested to the end by Benfica, while Barcelona made light work of SK Brann and PSG did enough to beat BK Häcken in their tie.

Those wins set up an intriguing two-legged semi final for all involved as Lyon and PSG are set to lock horns once again, and Chelsea face Barcelona again in the semi-finals; hoping for a different outcome this time around. The two ties will be played on April 20th and April 27th respectively.

Photo by Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images

Midge Purce suffers an ACL tear

In what was something no NJ/NY Gotham FC wanted to see, Midge Purce announced on her social media that her injury in the game against Portland resulted in a torn ACL. The news not only set Gotham back but also set the USWNT back as both Purce and Mia Fishel will be unavailable for the Paris Olympics this summer.

ACL tears are becoming more and more common in women’s soccer and as of right now, no one has the answers to why they occur so much. With more high profile names being made unavailable for the season due to ACL tears, the matter should be addressed by governing bodies all over the world so that we can prevent such a regular occurrence of them.

Sophia Smith is staying in Portland

Remaining in the NWSL, Sophia Smith and the Portland Thorns announced that the USWNT forward will be remaining in Rose City until 2025 with an option to extend until 2026. Smith stated that she felt comfortable in Portland and wasn’t looking to move anywhere else, despite interest from teams not in the NWSL.

With the way the season has started for Portland, Smith’s decision to stay is even more important as they will need her goals to keep them from sliding too far down the table. She can’t do it alone but having someone of Smith’s caliber in your lineup will give you a chance against anyone on any given day.