Key events
8 min: Brann counter and Kvamme pings the ball in and Gaupset gets a head to it, her attempt just wide. From the first leg we know all Brann need is one chance and everything will change.
6 min: Brugts wins yet another corner and Graham Hansen takes it this time, it’s headed away by Kvamme for – you guessed it – another corner. Graham Hansen is over the ball once again, they take it short and Bonmati eventually gets it into the box. It is well defended by Brann.
5 min: Putellas pops it in and Brann clear well. Every time Graham Hansen gets on the ball the travelling Brann support boo her, a great atmosphere in Barcelona.
4 min: The delivery looked good initially and seemed to be going all the way in but it is over the bar. Brann look to play out from the back but they immediately concede another corner.
3 min: Walsh finds Graham Hansen with a beautiful ball. She pops it into the box and tries to find Brugts but it is blocked out for a corner. Putellas takes the corner, she opts for the corner of the box and it comes to Brugts but her attempt is out for another corner.
2 min: Early on both teams are finding their feet, I’m expecting a tight game tonight but I bet Barcelona prove me wrong now I have said that.
Kick-off! Barcelona 0-0 Brann (2-1 on agg)
Here we go then! Can Brann cause a huge upset? Or will defending champions Barcelona cruise through? All to come.
Does anyone else absolutely love the Champions League anthem? I turn up my TV every time it comes on. Kick-off imminent.
The players are almost out in Barcelona and the weather looks stunning, perfect for a cracking match of football.
I’d love to hear from you. Yesterday we were talking biggest fails after I bruised my coccyx at a rollerdisco so I thought it would only be fair to speak today about biggest achievements. Let me know yours via X (@rendellx) or be email.
Last week’s goalscorer and Brann captain Cecilie Kvamme added: “Right now this is a match we are really looking forward to, especially because of the result we got last week which means that there is still life in the tie. We go in with the goal of winning. You always do that when you play.
Brann boss Martin Ho said: “We have a good chance to progress, because we feel that we had opportunities in the first match where we could have done better with the ball. We have to make sure we are relentless when we get the chance.”
Jonatan Giráldez, Barcelona’s manager, said: “We have scored plenty of goals and if we are able to produce a similar outcome, we would have a great chance of going through. Brann are are brave and aggressive in defence. It will be similar to the first leg.
“For me the key is consistency. There is very few teams in the world capable of being this consistent.”
The Guardian’s Suzy Wrack is reporting exclusively that Leicester City manager Willie Kirk has been fired over his alleged relationship with a player at the club. Read more here:
Chelsea played the second leg of their quarter-final last night against Ajax. That game ended 1-1 but with Chelsea winning the first leg 3-0 it was Emma Hayes’ side who came out on top:
The team news is in. Barcelona have benched Salma Paralluelo, who scored the winner in the first leg.
Barcelona:
Brann, meanwhile, do have star Signe Gaupset despite her going off earlier than expected in the first leg.
Brann:
Preamble
Hello and welcome back to the Women’s Champions League. This evening we will find out who will face Chelsea in the semi-finals as the winner of this quarter-final tie have been drawn against the Blues.
The first leg saw Brann play really well, they conceded early after Caroline Graham Hanse scored but they levelled though Cecilie Kvamme. The Norwegian team, in the quarters for the first time, defended really well and it took some skill from Salma Paralluelo to get the result for the defending champions.
Barcelona only hold a slim 2-1 lead but it will be a tricky task for Brann to beat the Spanish team at home. They need to at least win the game in 90 minute 1-0 to send it to extra time.
The team news will be out shortly so stay tuned before kick-off at 5.45pm GMT.