Dumornay’s return ends Arsenal’s UWCL defence, sends Lyon to another final

LYON, France — If OL Lyonnais wants to regain a place on the podium of Champions League winners, Melchie Dumornay will be at the heart of this initiative. The return of the Haitian international transformed the Lyonnais from a flat and uninspired team seen in the first leg into a team worthy of a Champions League final.

After an agonizing and rather ridiculous VAR check lasting three minutes and ten seconds for Jule Brand’s decisive goal which made it 3-1 for OL Lyonnes (4-3 on aggregate), the hosts burst into joy and invaded Dumornay. After all, it was his precise, perfectly weighted and direct pass that allowed Brand to seal his ticket to Oslo.

Dumornay was at the center of it all: she won the penalty which broke the deadlock, created multiple chances which kept OL Lyonnais behind from the kick-off and delivered an assist on the winning goal.

Lyon lacked courage and ruthlessness last weekend, a rare look for a team with such attacking talent. Dumornay – and Selma Bacha, who almost missed the first leg – changed the complexion of the team and forced Arsenal to change their approach too.

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Olivia Smith was one of Arsenal’s best players in the first leg, but she struggled mightily against Bacha. Dumornay, meanwhile, organized several Lyon attacks and forced the visitors into tight spaces, where they would eventually lose the ball so the French could hit them on the counter. It shows how vital Dumornay is that without her, Lyonnes managed just one shot on target in the first leg.

Her sporting IQ shone in moments when Arsenal defenders expected her to shoot; however, she had a head start. Rather than trying to make a tight angle work for a shot on goal, the Haitian international hit the ball over Leah Williamson to go out for a corner – Lyonnes had the ball in the back of the net twice via such deflections. That unpredictability makes her dangerous, but her IQ and execution make her one of the best players in the game right now.

Lyon did indeed lack a clinical edge, which has been a problem for much of this season, but also, in the first leg setback, Arsenal looked nervous. The Gunners’ confidence disappeared as soon as Lindsey Heaps headed home at the far post in the seventh minute from a perfectly weighted free-kick. You could see in their facial expression and body language that this once steadfast team had not anticipated or expected this from their opponents. Although the goal was ruled out after officials deemed Ingrid Engen to be offside and obstructing goalkeeper Daphne van Domselaar’s view, Arsenal’s confidence did not return.

Lotte Wubben-Moy fired at Dumornay as she headed towards goal – another example of her relentless determination – but for the England centre-back the challenge only added to the Gunners’ problems and the drama of that disallowed first goal was not over. Wendie Renard’s penalty had to be retaken after van Domselaar’s first save was overturned, with the goalkeeper judged to have left her line too early.

Few players are more reliable on the spot than Renard, the Lyon pillar, and she made no mistake from the second attempt. In doing so, she reached the level of most penalty goals in the Champions League this season with four and maintained her perfect record in the competition, having converted her last 10 goals.

Lyon quickly increased their advantage, learning not to rest on a 1-0 lead going into the break. Kadidiatou Diani punished Arsenal’s continued vulnerability from set pieces, responding to Brand’s pinpoint delivery with a pinpoint header to cap the first-half scoring.

It was obvious that Lyonnes wanted to use set pieces to hurt Arsenal. It’s a weakness they’ve shown in recent seasons, conceding 19 in the last two seasons in the Women’s Super League and Champions League. For comparison, Chelsea have only conceded nine over the same period. With old wounds reopened, Arsenal suddenly found themselves stuck. They managed to respond, equalizing through Alessia Russo despite her earlier struggles to influence the game.

But Dumornay had the last word, making a sublime pass to spot Brand and book Lyon’s place in the final in Oslo.

“What can I say? Melchie is an incredible player,” teammate Lily Yohannes told ESPN after the match. “You saw it today. You see it every time she’s on the field for us. She makes the difference.

“She’s such a threat. So having her on the field, playing alongside her, it kind of makes your job easier and you just want to get her back whenever you can.”

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The young American midfielder herself played a key role in Lyon’s success on Saturday afternoon, perfectly executing a pivot and pirouette to dance around defenders like a true ballerina.

It would be unfair to the team’s mentality to suggest that Dumornay was the sole cause of the victory, as the reality of having to face yet another crushing elimination from continental competition in the same way they lost last season – a crushing 4-1 second leg defeat after a 2-1 first leg triumph – would be fuel for any team.

No team has experienced such European domination. Eight titles is unheard of in modern football, and it was not achieved without effort. The Lyonnais earned all the glitz of their cabinet by being the best of the day, their prize for exorcising their demons from last season being a historic 12th Champions League final.

From there, Dumornay & Co. now has the opportunity to regain some of its former glory in the competition. Lyon have not won a title since 2022 and although they reached the 2024 final, it ended in defeat to Barcelona.

Lyon boss Jonatan Giraldez was in charge of the Catalans in that defeat, and they could be set for a reunion in the final. Barcelona will need to secure a victory over Bayern Munich on Sunday after drawing the first leg 1-1.

The competition’s reigning champions now face a nerve-wracking plane journey to London where they will likely rewatch every moment and decision they made, having missed a chance to retain their crown and become the first English team to appear in back-to-back European finals. They could be in the thick of a title race, provided they win their final two games in the Women’s Super League to put pressure on Manchester City, with their place in Europe all but preserved for next season thanks to Manchester United’s poor end to the campaign.

It won’t do much to ease the pain, but Arsenal’s bruising exit in 2023-24 qualifying set them up for their historic victory last season. Maybe this blight could fuel something bigger next season.