Arsenal midfielder Kim Little says progress in the UEFA Women’s Champions League is extremely important for the club.
The Gunners will face Dutch side Ajax in the second leg of the UEFA Women’s Champions League second round in Amsterdam on Wednesday night. The first leg ended 2-2 and both clubs will now give everything to get the required result in the second leg.
The winners of the match will advance to the lucrative group stage of the competition and Arsenal midfielder Little has stressed the importance of qualification for his side.
“It’s incredibly important,” Little said in the pre-match press conference. “I think our ambitions as a club are still to be in the Champions League and to progress there and obviously to be part of the group stage, which we entered last year.
“We know the importance of the game and our responsibility as players is to make sure we put in a performance tomorrow and make sure we get the win we need to progress.”
Given Arsenal’s stature in the game, the club should feature in the latter stages of European football’s premier club competition. Little went on to say the Gunners didn’t feel any extra pressure ahead of their final UEFA Women’s Champions League game.
She said: “I think usually we disconnect from that (additional pressure). We know we have the ability to take the next step and we need to make sure we do everything we can to prepare. If we take care of that, we will progress, so first and foremost that’s what we players are looking at.
“For me it adds excitement, it adds pressure, which is part of what we do and that’s what makes it so exciting and fun to play. Now you have that group stage – it it’s a similar format to what the men’s (game) has had in the past – and it’s such a great competition to be in, so we obviously want to do everything we can to make sure we progress to this stage.
Arsenal’s second round of the UEFA Women’s Champions League, second leg against Ajax, kicks off at 6pm on Wednesday evening.
