Celtic FC Women have picked up their first-ever win in the UEFA Women’s Champions League with a superb 1-0 result against Brondby this afternoon.
Club captain and defensive stalwart Kelly Clark powered the team to the narrow victory after a set piece caused havoc for the Danish defence in the 68th minute.
Clarke produced a huge performance, also standing up well defensively to deny Brondby, including a last-ditch clearance off the line that prevented an equaliser.
Fran Alonso’s side will now play FC Minsk or Valerenga in Norway on Saturday for the chance to progress directly into Round 2 of the tournament and a potential glamour tie against one of European football’s big hitters.
Today’s match took place in Norway with Valerenga hosting the four-team mini-tournament in Round One. It will be the same venue at the weekend, with the hosts and Minsk facing off tonight for the right to face Celtic.
Celtic qualified for the Women’s Champions League after narrowly missing out on the league title last season. They have only taken part in the competition once before. On that occasion, they were defeated by Levante and FC Minsk.
It’s been a stated intention for the club to make progress not just in Scottish competitions but on the continent. This is a big step forward in the difficult League Path. It’ll be massive if they can win on Saturday, too.
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After a summer of upheaval and losing some key players, full credit has to go to Fran Alonso, the squad and the new signings to secure a result like this.
Everyone is now looking forward to seeing what they can do next at this level.
In other news, Class Joe Hart interview clip emerges on Celtic social media.