Arsenal are back in the Champions League semi-finals after coming through a bruising, nervy tie in which control was often secondary to their work rate.
They lost on the night, but not where it mattered, with Daphne van Domselaar central to a display that said plenty about how far this side have come.
Arsenal have qualified for the Champions League semi-finals, going through 3-2 on aggregate despite losing the second leg against Chelsea 1-0 in injury time.
A Sjoeke Nuesken goal was not enough for Chelsea, with Daphne van Domselaar immense in Arsenal’s goal.
It was a tense game, full of duels and physical challenges. The refereeing team was kept busy, made some curious calls, and VAR did little to help those on the pitch.
VAR is there as a safety net for referees, and I do not think the officials were good enough across either leg of the tie. When a game is decided by such fine margins, as this one was, it is important to get those decisions right.
Arsenal have taken major steps in terms of their maturity. Winning the Women’s Champions League and the FIFA Women’s Champions Cup has clearly changed the mentality of the team. They now have belief.
They stood firm and tried to control the flow of the game, and they did not crumble under pressure. Only a year ago there was a great deal of uncertainty, but that has now gone.
Sadly, the injury curse struck again, with Steph Catley withdrawn before half-time with a calf problem. She was replaced by Taylor Hinds, with Katie McCabe moving to left centre-back again.
Leah Williamson was not fit and was not named in the squad, nor was Sophie Harwood.
Emily Fox also seemed to have a problem and was replaced by Smilla Holmberg, who was again excellent. The hope now is simply that no more injuries are added to the list, because the squad is getting shorter and shorter in numbers.
On the disciplinary side, Aaron d’Antino collected his third booking of the tournament and will therefore miss the first semi-final.
McCabe’s hair-pulling action was not checked by VAR, so unless UEFA open a disciplinary case, which does not happen often, she is in the clear for the moment.
Next for Arsenal is the Women’s FA Cup round five at Meadow Park against Brighton on Sunday, and some rotation should be expected.
Players who have not started recently are likely to be involved before the squad heads off on international duty.