Casparij: We wanted to give the fans more | OneFootball

Kerstin Casparij says she and her team-mates wanted to give the Club and City fans more after defeat to Chelsea in the UEFA Women's Champions League quarter-finals.

A 3-0 second leg defeat at Stamford Bridge saw us edged out 3-2 on aggregate to Sonia Bompastor's side.

The tie also closed the curtain on a four-match sequence against Chelsea in the space of just 12 days, which has seen considerable strain put on a threadbare City squad.

While not looking for excuses, Casparij admitted that injury list had affected the Blues, but was frustrated that we didn't quite have enough to reward the fans for their continued support.

Speaking to UEFA, the Dutch international said: "Disappointed is the word that comes to mind. To have a two-goal lead but then to be three down at half-time is disappointing.

"It really hurts, we wanted to give the Club and the fans more, but we weren't able to do that.

"I think it caught up with us in the end. You could see in the second half, a lot of us have been playing four 90 minutes in the span of 12 days, and that catches up with you at some point.

"I don't want to put all the lame on that but it didn't help us.

Attentions now turn to City's domestic pursuits, with plenty still to fight for on two fronts across the remainder of 2024/25.

Nick Cushing's side have an FA Cup semi-final to prepare for after the international break when we welcome Manchester United to the Joie Stadium.

A spot in the Barclays Women's Super League top three - and subsequent Champions League qualification - is also still up for grabs, with a crucial tie at Brighton coming on Sunday.

And Casparij says she and her team-mates must try and put our European disappointment behind us with focus now firmly on the FA Cup and WSL.

"That's the main goal now, trying to get in the Champions League spots," she added.

"We also have the FA Cup still to play for, so we have two big goals.

"It's disappointing tonight, but tomorrow is a new day."