Arsenal, Manchester City reach women’s Champions League group stage

Arsenal, which missed out on last season’s group stage, went in front through Lia Waelti midway through the first half as the Swedish resistance crumbled.

Arsenal’s Beth Mead, second left, celebrates with teammates after scoring the side’s third goal. | Photo Credit: Andrew Matthews/AP

Arsenal crushed Sweden’s Haecken 4-0 at home to secure a 4-1 aggregate victory and Italy’s Juventus notched a 5-2 aggregate win over French club Paris St Germain on Thursday as both teams qualified for the women’s Champions League group stage.

Arsenal, which missed out on last season’s group stage, went in front through Lia Waelti midway through the first half and the Swedish resistance crumbled, allowing Mariona Caldentey to add a second before the break.

Beth Mead kept the momentum going by scoring early in the second half and Norwegian midfielder Frida Maanum added a fourth to see the English side safely through.

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Juventus scored in the second minute to add to its two-goal cushion from the first leg, and although PSG equalised from the penalty spot early in the second half, Barabara Bonansea struck again for the Italians to secure their progression.

AS Roma thumped Switzerland’s Servette 7-2 away to complete a 10-3 aggregate win, and last season’s English Super League runner-up Manchester City put three past Paris FC at home to complete an 8-0 aggregate rout and book its spot in the group stage.

The draw to separate the 16 qualifiers into four groups of four takes place at 1100 GMT on Friday.