After waiting so long for Champions League football, Manchester United’s journey is over before it really had a chance to begin.
They will feel hard done by in more ways than one. This was an extremely difficult tie against the former French champions Paris Saint-Germain, which manager Marc Skinner believed could have been a quarter-final.
Then there was the contentious officiating decision to rule out Leah Galton’s goal with 20 minutes to go. That would have made it 3-2 and would have given United a lifeline. Whether it would have changed the outcome of this result, we will never know.
Across the two legs United did not take their chances. Their opponents did and, at this level, that is the difference.
United join Arsenal and Wolfsburg, who both reached last year’s semi-final, as the big clubs who will not take part in the group stage this season.
PSG’s Lieke Martens scored two goals to send United crashing out of the competition
The forward was on target either side of the break to ensure there was to be no shock in Paris
Sandy Baltimore netted the third of the night for the hosts to send Manchester United crashing out
Skinner had spoken before the game about the qualifying format and how too many big teams would fall victim to early eliminations.
The structure sees teams who won their domestic leagues allocated to the ‘champions path’ while those finished in lower positions are placed in the ‘league path’.
This meant there were some incredibly one-sided ties, with Czech champions Slavia Praha beating Romanian champions Olimpia Cluj 11-0 on aggregate.
It does not make sense and Skinner’s frustration is understandable. But every club knew the situation before qualifying took place.
Arsenal knew finishing third would give them less turnaround time between the end of the World Cup and their first Champions League fixture. Both teams still had chances to win their respective matches.
PSG could have wrapped up this tie in the first half of last week’s first leg had they taken their chances. They were more clinical on home turf and took the lead in the 17th minute.
Tabitha Chawinga’s initial shot was saved by the feet of Mary Earps but Lieke Martens was on-hand to fire the rebound into the top corner.
United had a huge chance to equalise just before the half-time whistle when Geyse played Ella Toone through on goal, but the forward could only slice a shot wide.
Skinner’s side did get themselves back on level terms within minutes of the restart when Lisa Naalsund met Geyse’s cut-back to fire into the top left corner.
But their celebrations were short-lived as PSG re-took the lead straight from kick-off. Less than 60 seconds had passed between Naalsund scoring at the other end when Chawinga fed Martens to make it 2-1 with a cool finish at the back-post.
United were nearly level again when Galton picked out Hannah Blundell on the edge of the box but the defender’s curling shot was well saved by Katarzyna Kiedrzynek.
But they were given a mountain to climb when PSG scored a third just before the hour mark.
Man United’s Ella Toone missed a golden opportunity to equalise just before half-time
Leah Galton (left) and Paris Saint-Germain’s Jade Le Guilly battle for the ball during the match
Baltimore drove past Blundell and sent a chipped shot to the near post which drifted over Earps and into the back of the net. The goalkeeper had perhaps been expecting a cross but will no doubt feel she should have done better.
United had the ball in the back of the net again in the 71st minute when Galton met a lofted pass to flick a header over a helpless Kiedrzynek. But referee Ivana Projkovska believed she had seen a foul on the PSG goalkeeper and awarded a free-kick, much to the dismay of the United bench.
Replays showed Galton had got to the ball before Kiedrzynek and had not made contact with her opponent. United’s bench were furious and they had every right to be. Toone then hit the bar in the closing stages but, by then, the game was done.
United’s exit means Chelsea will be the only English team to compete in the group stage, with the Blues set to find out their group stage opponents on Friday.
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