FC Bayern Women ready for Old Trafford showdown against Manchester United in UEFA Women’s Champions League quarter-final

FC Bayern Women resume their UEFA Women’s Champions League journey with a trip to England as they visit Old Trafford to take on Manchester United in the first leg of their quarter-final tie on Wednesday (kick-off: 21:00 CET). Here’s all you need to know ahead of the game as José Barcala’s side look to take a step towards the semi-finals.

Latest news from Bayern

Bayern finished fourth in the league phase with a record of four wins, one draw and one defeat as they progressed straight into the competition’s last eight. After an opening defeat in Barcelona, the Munich Frauen registered victories over Juventus, holders Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain and Valerenga. A last-minute goal saw them held by Atlético Madrid.

Things are also progressing nicely in the defence of their two domestic titles. A 3-0 win at Hamburg earlier in the month saw Bayern through to the semi-finals of the DFB Cup, where they will host Essen on 6 April. In the Bundesliga, captain Glódís Perla Viggósdóttir and her team sit top of the standings after Friday’s 5-0 victory at Essen, meaning they have won 19 out of 20 league fixtures this season.

Opponent: Manchester United

United have had a long journey to get to this stage in the Champions League this season. They had to come through qualifiers to reach the main stage of the competition for the very first time. Marc Skinner’s side then missed out on the top four by just a point after winning four and losing two of their games in the league phase. The Red Devils were then the seeded team in the play-off as they recorded 3-0 and 2-0 wins over Atlético to earn their place in Europe’s top eight.

Bayern have enjoyed their previous encounters with United. They beat them 2-1 in the final of last year’s World Sevens Football tournament to lift the trophy in Portugal, having also won a friendly 3-2 in 2023. The Munich Frauen came out on top in the final of the Amos Women’s French Cup in 2022 as well.

🔎 Get the lowdown on Manchester United here:

Team news

Coach Barcala remains without Sarah Zadrazil and Lena Oberdorf as they recover from their cruciate ligament injuries. Alara Şehitler (partial ACL tear), Klara Bühl (muscular), Jovana Damnjanović (workload) and Katharina Naschenweng (knee) are also still unavailable, while Anna Klink is also set to miss the next two weeks with a minor muscle tear.

Momoko Tanikawa is back and in the squad for the trip to England after winning the Asian Cup with Japan. Luzie Zähringer and Julia Kreuzpainter from the reserves have also joined the team for this game.

Pre-match quotes

José Barcala: “We’re really looking forward to this game against Manchester United and are well prepared. We’re expecting a well-organised opponent that plays with great intensity and has great individual quality. The Champions League is a different sort of competition, with different games, different challenges and different emotions. Our job is to come through all these phases with experience and maturity, and to show that we’re ready for exactly these kinds of games. It’s really special to play in a stadium like Old Trafford, with its great history. That gives us additional motivation.”

Pernille Harder: “I’m expecting a very good opponent. Manchester United have developed well in recent years. They have lots of very good players. We know it won’t be an easy game, but it’s these games that you want to experience as a player. I’m really looking forward to this tie and am really excited to see how we fare against this opponent.”

Get to know more about Harder ahead of this special fixture for her: