Potsdam prolific in easing past Juvisy

Isabel Kerschowski and Yuki Nagasato both scored twice as 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam cruised past FCF Juvisy Essonne and set up a second straight UEFA Women's Champions League semi-final against FCR 2001 Duisburg.

Leading 3-0 from the first leg, the holders increased their lead through Kerschowski and a double from Nagasato before Laëtitia Tonazzi reduced the visitors' arrears on 37 minutes. It was soon 4-1, however, as Bianca Schmidt struck on the cusp of half-time.

Though Gaëtane Thiney pulled another goal back seven minutes after the break, any hopes Juvisy had of taking anything from the return disappeared when Nelly Guilbert was sent off moments after Anja Mittag scored. Kerschowski rounded things off with a quarter of an hour left.

It was, however, a balanced affair until a Potsdam counterattack on 18 minutes culminated in Mittag teeing up Kerschowski. Nagasato struck the first of her quick-fire double just after half-hour mark, following up after Audrey Malet had repelled Tabea Kemme's effort.

Four minutes after Nagasato's second, Emilie Trimoreau's ball into the middle enabled Tonazzi to get Juvisy off the mark in the tie. It proved a mere blip for the hosts as the impressive Kerschowski crossed for Schmidt to head past Malet.

Thiney punished a rare mistake in the hosts' defence but, like their previous effort, it was soon followed by a Potsdam response as Mittag fired in from outside the box. Juvisy's night swiftly deteriorated when Guilbert received her second booking on 63 minutes but there was still time for Mittag to find Kerschowski to embellish the scoreline yet further.

Bernd Schröder, whose German champions visit Duisburg on 9/10 April and are at home the following week hoping to at least match their penalty shoot-out success 12 months earlier, said: "In Paris Juvisy played very aggressively and hard. Today was not so hard, and the French women have shown how well they can play football. We played well and scored some great goals. Our opponents are  a good team. Both teams can be satisfied. I hope we in the German Cup [against 1. FFC Frankfurt in Cologne] on Saturday."

Juvisy coach Sandrine Mathivet, whose team will now try to earn second place in France to return to the competition, said: "We tried to keep a very good and strong Turbine Potsdam team at bay and succeeded quite well at first. Potsdam were very strong today, but we tried to do our best."