Inma Gabarro has sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury, which will rule the Everton midfielder out for an extended period. The 23 year old Spanish international sustained the injury during Everton’s 3-2 defeat to Liverpool at Goodison Park on Saturday afternoon. This is absolutely devastating news for the Toffees.

Everton announced the news via a post on their official club X account this evening. Moreover, Gabarro left the field in the 55th minute and was replaced by Kelly Gago during the Merseyside derby.

Ruptured Her Anterior Cruciate Ligament

Gabarro’s condition has now been fully assessed by the Everton medical team. Furthermore, it has been determined that the player has ruptured her anterior cruciate ligament. She will miss the remainder of the current campaign as well as a large chunk of next season.

The Spaniard’s injury capped off a disappointing Merseyside derby for the blue side of Liverpool. Everton was 3-0 down before producing a response in the second half, which proved to be too little too late for the Toffees.

Still Plenty to Play For

Everton have three games remaining this season, with still plenty to play for. Consequently, the Toffees are able to record a top half of the table finish with a positive sequence of results, which would represent a successful campaign overall.

Nevertheless, Everton have home games against Chelsea and Leicester City remaining, along with a trip to Arsenal. The fixtures provide opportunities to finish the season strongly despite losing Gabarro. He has been an important part of the midfield this campaign.

The injury represents another blow to women’s football. With ACL injuries continuing to plague the game at an alarming rate, which highlights the urgent need for further research into prevention methods and recovery protocols.

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Lucy Bronze has set herself the challenge of delivering Champions League glory to Chelsea Women and emulating the historic success achieved by the men’s team. The England international admits European triumph remains the one major honour missing from the Blues’ trophy cabinet despite their domestic dominance in recent years.

Bronze spoke candidly about her desire to help Chelsea finally conquer Europe after they have fallen agonizingly short on multiple occasions. The serial winner hopes her vast experience can guide the Blues to the elusive trophy. They first face a daunting task to overturn a 3-1 first leg deficit against Arsenal on Wednesday to keep their dreams alive.

European Success Only Missing Piece

The 34 year old defender explained how Chelsea have come close to lifting the Champions League trophy without getting over the line. “It’s the one piece of silverware that’s just evaded the club; making the final, being so close in the semi finals and beating top teams in the Champions League, but not actually quite making it over the line,” Bronze stated.

She emphasized the importance of matching the legendary status of Chelsea’s male counterparts. The Champions League plays a huge part in the history of the men’s side, and it would be nice to get their hands on it.

Belief Key to Overturning Arsenal Deficit

Bronze remains confident Chelsea can overturn the two goal deficit against Arsenal. Having helped her previous teams come from behind in similar circumstances. Her European pedigree is unmatched, having won three consecutive titles with Lyon and becoming the first defender named UEFA Women’s Player of the Year in 2018-19.

The veteran believes psychological strength is paramount, insisting it’s not always the team that performs best throughout the season that comes out on top, but rather about sticking together and believing you can do it.

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Chelsea Women host Arsenal Women at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday evening in the second leg of their UEFA Women’s Champions League quarter final. The Blues trail 3-1 from the first leg at the Emirates Stadium and face a daunting task to overturn the deficit against the defending champions, who are riding a nine match winning streak across all competitions.

Sonia Bompastor’s side got back to winning ways in the WSL on Saturday with a thrilling 4-3 victory over Aston Villa after falling behind early. Sam Kerr, Naomi Girma, and Lauren James all found the net before Sjoeke Nusken emerged as the hero with the decisive goal in a breathless encounter at Stamford Bridge.

Kick-off: 20:00 BST, Wednesday, April 1, 2026
Venue: Stamford Bridge, London
TV: BBC iPlayer and Disney+

Arsenal Cruising After Clinical First Leg Performance

Arsenal were ruthless at the Emirates last week, racing into a two goal halftime lead through Stina Blackstenius and Chloe Kelly before Alessia Russo restored their advantage after Lauren James had briefly given Chelsea hope with a stunning strike. The Gunners have won nine consecutive matches and demolished Tottenham 5-2 in Saturday’s north London derby.

Chelsea will need to produce a monumental performance to reach the semi finals after falling behind in this competition for the first time this season. The Blues finished third in the league phase before dispatching Barcelona and Roma, but now face elimination unless they can overturn a two goal deficit.

First Leg Defeat Increases Pressure on Bompastor

This represents the first meeting between Chelsea and Arsenal in the Champions League, though the sides have faced each other three times already this season. Arsenal won 2-0 at Stamford Bridge in January before both teams played out a 1-1 draw at the Emirates in November when Alyssa Thompson scored for Chelsea.

Chelsea’s last victory over the Gunners came in January 2025, when Guro Reiten’s late penalty secured a narrow 1-0 win. Bompastor desperately needs her side to produce their best performance of the season.

Predicted Lineups: Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Hampton; Bronze, Girma, Bright, Nouwen; Cuthbert, Nusken; James, Kaptein, Thompson; Kerr

Arsenal (4-3-3): van Domselaar; Fox, Williamson, Catley, McCabe; Little, Caldentey, Maanum; Kelly, Russo, Blackstenius

Also read: Lucy Bronze Left Frustrated by Soft Decisions as Arsenal Edge Chelsea 3-1 in Champions League Quarter Final First Leg Thriller at Emirates Stadium