Neither side secured a win but both Chelsea and Arsenal have real hopes of reaching the Champions League final after their respective first legs in the last four.
The Blues were beaten 1-0 by tournament favourites Barcelona, but showed promise despite going down to Caroline Graham Hansen's early wonderstrike. WSL title rivals Arsenal then displayed superb character a day later, to come back from 2-0 down at Wolfsburg to level the tie at 2-2.
Over the next week both sides face the return game, which will decide whether they reach a second European Cup final. Chelsea travel to Barcelona this Thursday night for a showdown at Camp Nou in front of what is expected to be the competition's biggest crowd this season of around 60,000.
Arsenal then host Wolfsburg on Bank Holiday Monday at the Emirates Stadium, with over 46,000 tickets already sold as things stand. Here are five lessons from the first legs that could be key to a first ever all-English final.
Chelsea - go bold and utilise Lauren James
Emma Hayes decided to leave out Lauren James for the first game at Stamford Bridge and her post-game reasoning made complete sense. The hosts wanted to drop deep and cut-off Barcelona's central passing lanes, so Hayes went with a 5-3-1-1 system and looked to play on the break.
Lauren James isn't a wing-back and Guro Reiten offers far more defensively than the England star - so the decision was a simple one. But for the second leg James' power and strength running with the ball, could prove crucial. Chelsea will want to slow the game down and win set-pieces, that is where James direct approach will work wonders.
Even in the second-half of the first leg she showed this in glimpses although Hayes was still wary of her defensive capabilities. "With Lauren we played a 3-5-2," she said. "(Wing-back) isn't where Lauren's strengths are going to be. "The decision was the right decision. Even in the second half Lauren brought a threat, but there is so much work to do without the ball, because they are so good in possession."
But whatever happens on Thursday, Chelsea need to score at least once in Barcelona to progress. Sam Kerr needs support and James should be in from the off.
Arsenal - get Frida Maanum higher up the pitch
Jonas Eidevall's hands are tied in a tactical sense at the moment. The Swede has worked wonders in recent weeks with a patched up squad and his gameplan was spot on for the first leg.
His central midfield of Lia Walti and Frida Maanum is almost picked purely on who is left standing, following the recent season-ending injuries to Kim Little and Leah Williamson. But the duo excelled in the first leg and after a shaky start, eventually ran the show in midfield.
Walti and Maanum have covered more distance than anyone else in the Champions League this season and their high energy levels was crucial to the comeback in Germany. But if Arsenal want to create more chances in the second leg, they need their strongest attacking outlet - Maanum - inside the final third.
One option could be to bring Danish youngster Kathrine Moller Kühl into midfield and push Maanum into a number 10 role, perhaps at the expense of a centre-back. If Arsenal are chasing a goal with 20 minutes to play expect this to happen.
Arsenal - stay close to Ewa Pajor
Eidevall's switch to a back three paid off in the first leg, but his centre-backs will need to keep Ewa Pajor quiet if they are to book their flights to Eindhoven. The competition's top scorer netted her eighth goal in the Champions League in the 19th minute when easily peeling away from Jen Beattie, who had an otherwise fine game.
Lotte Wubben-Moy didn't react in time to cover the space in behind and Arsenal had conceded the crucial first goal. They got to grips with Pajor in the second half, but the Polish forward is the sort of player who will punish you after the slightest dip in concentration.
Giving one of the back three a player-marking job for the second leg may be required, with Rafaelle perhaps the best candidate due to her speed and ability to cover space in-behind.
Chelsea - Harder wildcard could prove crucial
She may be still working her way back towards full fitness after five months out of action, but don't rule out Pernille Harder still playing a part in this tie. "Pernille is not fit to start, she hasn't played for months. She can only give us 10 or 15 minutes at the moment," Hayes said following the first leg.
Her substitute appearance in the 84th minute, was indeed the first time she has been spotted on a pitch in 2023. But for a player of Harder's quality she may only need 20 minutes or so to make an impact in Barcelona.
Hayes has spoken repeatedly about the need to "stay in the tie" and if her team is within a goal of the Spanish side going into the closing stages, Harder could be the player to turn to. This is someone who not only cost a world record fee when joining Chelsea, but is determined to win Europe's biggest club prize after finishing as runner-up on three separate occasions.
If the tie is still alive, Hayes will surely be keen to take a gamble and give her more than the six minutes of normal time she got in the first leg.
Refuse to give in
Less of a tactical lesson but still worth revisiting before the deciders. If there was one key quality both Arsenal and Chelsea showed in their first leg ties, it was resilience. After Chelsea conceded after just four minutes thanks to the excellent Hansen, you feared the worst for Emma Hayes' team.
But they stuck to their task admirably and seemed to defend with greater resolve the longer the game went on. Arsenal suffered an even worst start in Germany, with the Frauen-Bundesliga champions racing into a two-goal lead inside 25 minutes.
But their remarkable comeback showed just what this current crop is made of. Despite missing arguably their four best players, Arsenal dug-in and got themselves a superb result. Regardless of what happens in the early stages of the second legs, both English sides need to remember what got them this far.
Both Barcelona and Wolfsburg are wonderful teams with plenty of European experience, but it's never over until the final whistle.
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