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Barcelona and Bayern Munich were 1-0 winners in their Champions League clashes against Roma and Arsenal resspectively.
A 1-0 scoreline probably flatters Roma, as Barcelona dominated in large parts, but profligacy—with Oshoala the biggest culprit—set them up for a frenetic end.
Roma hosted Barcelona at a packed Stadio Tre Fontaine, as 39,454 spectators—a record in Italian women's football—came to watch them attempt to half the run of the 2020/21 Champions.
How it happened
Barcelona were on the front foot from the start of proceedings, taking the game to their hosts. Roma had a few counters at the beginning, but as the game progressed, Barcelona shifted into full control.
Roma were resolute defensively, but their resistance was broken in the 34th minute of the game when Salma Parraluelo collected the ball on the edge of the box before placing the ball brilliantly into the bottom left corner.
The second half started as the first ended, with the visitors on the front foot.
Barcelona came close to making it two at the start of the half when Salma squared the ball to Oshoala, but the Nigerian striker connected poorly with the ball for an easy save for Camelia Caesar in goal for Roma.
This kicked off a flurry of attacks that saw Oshoala get on the end of two other chances, but Caesar frustrated the 28-year-old.
Roma started to look dangerous on transitions again, as anticipated pregame, and they came close to grabbing an equaliser, but Barcelona regained control, and Oshoala was frustrated once more, with her header cleared off the line. Oshoala's ill luck in front of goal continued until she was taken off and replaced by Geyse Fereira in the 65th minute.
Barcelona kept pushing, but their dominance was halted late in the game when Roma started to take more risks.
The host had a late flurry of attacks, but they bore no fruit, as Barcelona successfully took a first-leg lead away from the Stadio Tre Fontaine.
Barcelona will host Roma at Camp Nou next week for the second-leg.
Bayern Munich vs Arsenal
Bayern Munich hosted Arsenal earlier in the day for the first-leg of their Champions League quarter-final draw at the Grunwalder Stadium.
Although Arsenal enjoyed the bulk of possession, especially in the second half, they did not manage to get an equaliser to Bayern's opener in the first-half.
Lea Schuller gave the Bavarians the lead in the 39th minute of the game after she was set up by Maximilliane Rall. The goal rewarded a period of dominance by Bayern, who were initially pinned back by their visitors.
Arsenal threw the kitchen sink at Bayern in the second half, with wave after wave of attacks, but they did not manage to pry open the slammed-shut Bayern defence.
Arsenal host the return leg on March 29 next week, and it is all to play for for a spot in the semi-final.
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