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<\/p>\nChelsea are the only English side in the Women\u2019s Champions League this season <\/p>\n
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Chelsea have been drawn against Real Madrid and Arsenal\u2019s conquerors Paris FC in the Women\u2019s Champions League group stage.<\/p>\n
Emma Hayes\u2019 side, beaten finalists in 2021, will also face Swedish outfit Hacken in Group D.<\/p>\n
French side Paris beat last season\u2019s semi-finalists Arsenal on penalties in the first qualifying round on their way to this phase of the competition for the first time.<\/p>\n
Neighbours Paris Saint-Germain, who dispensed with WSL runners-up Manchester United in the second qualifying round, have been drawn in Group C along with Bayern Munich, Roma and Ajax.<\/p>\n
Eight-times winners Lyon face Slavia Prague, St Polten and Brann – who beat Scottish champions Glasgow City to reach this stage for the first time – while reigning champions Barcelona were paired with Rosengard, Benfica and Eintracht Frankfurt.<\/p>\n
Chelsea were beaten by Barcelona in last season\u2019s semi-finals, following a memorable quarter-final victory against the holders Lyon. <\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Manchester United manager Marc Skinner clarified his comments around the Champions League qualifying format after suggesting it was \u201ccrazy\u201d United played PSG in a qualifying round.<\/p>\n
After finishing second in the Women\u2019s Super League last season, United went through the competition\u2019s qualifying rounds and were knocked out at the second hurdle on Wednesday night after being beaten 4-2 on aggregate by PSG<\/p>\n
Last year\u2019s WSL winners Chelsea earned an automatic group spot, while third-placed Arsenal went into the qualifiers, where they were eliminated by Paris FC in the first round.<\/p>\n
Skinner said: \u201cMy comment was much more about the breadth and quality, I believe there is a need for more teams to be in this competition, and then you\u2019ll see who is average and who isn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho knows, we might have been average in a group stage, you don\u2019t know that. If there was any offence taken then I\u2019m sorry for that, but that\u2019s not what I meant.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I meant, and I\u2019ll be clear on it, was I think there should be a broader scope of teams and there should be more teams in this competition so that we can actually then see where the elite level lies within Europe.<\/p>\n
\u201cI still think that\u2019s a bit cloudy because the reality is, if we were playing a team that are from – what people might believe- to be a league that doesn\u2019t have the experience, then we don\u2019t know until we\u2019ve played those, we only ever play those teams in friendlies.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you really want the real quality from all of the European leagues to rise, then you\u2019ve got to play them against each other, which I think now other teams are ready for.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you enter that stage and are getting through, then congratulations. We\u2019re not there so we can talk about what that looks like, but they are there so congratulations to everyone who\u2019s gone through.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chelsea are now the only WSL team left in the competition, and Arsenal manager Jonas Eidevall believes that English teams need to improve.<\/p>\n
He told a press conference: \u201cWe\u2019re number four in Europe [in UEFA\u2019s coefficient rankings]. We can\u2019t say that\u2019s anyone else\u2019s problem except our own. We need to improve, English teams have not done well enough in Europe.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Conti Cup group that Manchester United are in now might be tougher than some Women\u2019s Champions League groups. But [UEFA] need to grow all of women\u2019s football in Europe – that\u2019s really important. They can\u2019t only take [WSL] opinions into account.\u201d<\/p>\n