Leah Williamson is far from fully fit - but England captain is a risk worth taking for Arsenal in Women's Champions League pursuit

It was a risk to put Williamson out there in Sunday's first leg. With her only having completed 45 minutes of action in the last six weeks, it was never expected that she could play the whole 90 at Emirates Stadium, especially given the elite opposition and extremely high level game. It meant Slegers was going to have to reshuffle the defence with a pre-planned substitution in a game of immense magnitude.

But there were two big reasons why the Arsenal boss felt the potential disruption that may have caused was a risk worth taking. The first relates to the trust she holds in this squad. The change moved Lotte Wubben-Moy from left centre-back to right centre-back, shuffled left-back Katie McCabe inside and introduced Taylor Hinds, who had never played in the Champions League before this season, on the left.

When asked how much confidence she has to have in her players in order to do all of that, and midway through a high-pressure second half in which the score was finely balanced at 1-1, Slegers unflinchingly replied: "That's the answer. I trust the players. I think their readiness, the whole squad's readiness, is at such a high level."

The second reason why it was a risk worth taking is because of the value in having Williamson out there, even if not for a whole game. The impact she made against Lyon was evident, particularly in possession. Williamson adds another dimension to what Arsenal can do on the ball because of her passing range from deep, with her brilliant at playing effective long balls forward to spark the Gunners into life in the final third out of nothing.

On Sunday, she completed 20 accurate passes in the opposition's half and played 13 passes into the final third, including one key pass. In Arsenal's last four games, all of which Williamson was absent for, their centre-backs have struggled to make that sort of impact in possession.

Indeed, in that time, only Wubben-Moy's performance in the FA Cup defeat to Brighton has produced those kinds of numbers. In the other three games, no Arsenal centre-back made a key pass, played more than 20 accurate passes in the opposition's half or played more than nine passes into the final third.

"Leah Williamson gives you this, she wants to play the threaded passes through the lines," Fran Kirby, her former England team-mate, noted for BBC Sport. "She sees the space opening up and she's so, so good at it."

There were some questions raised of Williamson for Lyon's goal, with her drawn too far wide and thus opening up significant space for Jule Brand to dart into and score, but such a lapse was not a major surprise given the lack of football the 29-year-old has played recently.

She made amends with some good defending in other moments, winning three of her four duels to help keep former Ballon d'Or winner Ada Hegerberg quiet at the top of Lyon's attack, while also recovering the ball eight times, a number only bettered by Arsenal right-back Emily Fox.

It's been a tough season for Williamson when it comes to injuries. She came into it with a knee issue, one picked up during England's triumphant Euro 2025 campaign that sidelined her until December. Then, just a few weeks after her return, the defender picked up a calf problem that would keep her out for another month, before the latest ailment, related to her hamstring, sidelined her for another five weeks.

The timing of her return, though, couldn't be better. With Katie Reid, the very impressive teenager who served as Williamson's replacement early in the season, ruled out for the campaign after a devastating ACL injury, Catley's recent calf problem has further depleted the centre-back position, with Williamson herself still missing when the Australia international sustained that injury.

Slegers has found Laia Codina's level somewhat lacking when she has turned to the Spain international in recent weeks, too, so much so that she has opted to play McCabe centrally instead. But Williamson's return means that should put the Ireland captain back in her best position at left-back on a regular basis going forward.

Paired with the very in-form Wubben-Moy, who has performed at an outstanding level since getting back into the starting line-up on a consistent basis, Arsenal now have a centre-back pair they can have serious confidence in as the season heats up. How the two worked together to restrict Lyon's ferocious attack to very few chances on Sunday was impressive, with the back line responding well to the early setback caused by Brand's goal.

OL should be stronger in the second leg. Melchie Dumornay, who has been one of the best players in the world this season, was unavailable for minutes in north London as she recovers from a knock. It was the same for Selma Bacha, their incredibly dangerous and world-class left-back. But Lyon boss Jonatan Giraldez, who also didn't use flying winger Tabitha Chawinga at the Emirates, said after the game that he expects both to be available for the return leg.

Slegers will have further opportunity to manage the building of Williamson's minutes on Wednesday, as Arsenal take on Leicester City in the Women's Super League. The Foxes are bottom of the table and it is expected that the Gunners will rotate accordingly, with one eye firmly on the trip to France. However, there is also a slim chance of greater success in the league now, after leaders Manchester City surprisingly slipped up against Brighton on Saturday, even if the title is still a long shot.

It's the Champions League, then, where Arsenal's biggest chance of silverware this season remains. It's not going to be easy, by any means. Lyon have been impeccable at home this season, winning every single game since the Gunners' 4-1 victory in the Champions League semi-finals last year, in fact. If Slegers' side can prevail again, it won't get any easier in the final, where three-time winners Barcelona or an improved Bayern Munich will await them.

But Arsenal repeatedly defied the odds to triumph on the continent last season, enjoying comeback wins over both Real Madrid and Lyon before stunning Barca to lift a second European title. Now, with Williamson back in the fold, their chances of defending that crown have certainly increased.

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