St. Pölten earns its first point in the Women’s Champions League with a 0-0 draw with Slavia

In front of just 762 spectators, Melanie Brunthaler was unlucky with a shot off the post (36th), but otherwise there were very few chances for the home team. The Czechs were generally more dangerous, with Karina Schlüter keeping St. Pölten from conceding a goal with a few saves. However, the gap between Olympique Lyonnais and Braun Bergen (6 each) cannot be significantly reduced before the evening match. On Thursday (9pm) next week, St. Pölten and Slavia will meet again in the Czech Republic.

Lissie Brancao fielded the same starting XI that last started in the 0-2 defeat in Lyon. However, the Brazilian’s hope of controlling the match from the beginning and controlling it did not materialize. The hosts had difficulty entering the match and faced major defensive problems. Schlüter had to defuse a shot from Tereza Krejciricova early on and was fortunate that Michaela Jairova’s subsequent shot ended up in the side netting (fourth).

Franny Serna’s long-range shot went just over (21′), and Schluter was able to block Haley Stackpole’s shot for a corner kick (24′). After only half an hour, the Lower Austria team was able to develop something in attack, as happened in the 33rd minute. Brunthaler went down after a challenge with Diana Bartovicova, and instead of receiving a possible red card for stealing a goal and a free kick, Portuguese referee Catarina Campos allowed the game to continue. Much to the annoyance of Brancao and the home team’s fans.

Brunthaler took the lead again three minutes later. After a wonderful continuous pass from Mikolayova, the striker hit the crossbar first, and the subsequent shot was followed by defender Lucy Bendova, who was able to block the ball to her goalkeeper (36).

After restarting, little changed in the game. A shot from Brunthaler went over the crossbar (49). On the other hand, Schluter blocked Zio’s shot (56). Rita Schumacher “Joker” St. Pölten missed the goal once (64 minutes) but remained harmless. In the end, it was clear that Slavia were closer to victory, with Schluter making a brilliant save from Haley Stackpole’s shot in the 92nd minute.

This at least prevented a third defeat after the bitter opening 1:2 against Bergen and 0:2 against Lyon. He kept Slavia, who had previously lost 9-0 at Lyon and 1-0 in Bergen, at bay. As happened in 2022 in St. Pölten (1:1), there was a points split in the direct home confrontation with Slavia.