The tenth round of the Women’s National League B season, played midweek, presented Lugano with a gruelling challenge against the unbeaten league leaders Thun, whose ambitions to return to the top flight are clear. The 7–1 victory with which the Bernese side wrapped up the ninety minutes at the Centro Sportivo Al Maglio is a striking illustration of their strength.
On Wednesday evening in Canobbio – where, due to rain, wind and decidedly autumnal weather, there were not many spectators in the stands – the match really came to life as time went on. The first notable moment came in the seventh minute, with Sara Di Mauro making two crucial saves from Anfal El Yamani’s shots following a slip by captain Melissa Colombo. Six minutes later, a cross from Céline Schmid into the box allowed Chantal Ruf to pounce on the ball and unleash an unstoppable, powerful right-footed shot at mid-height. The Confederation’s lead was quickly doubled, as Selina Jud received the ball in the centre of the box after a quarter of an hour, turned and fired past Chiara Audrino. The visitors’ pressure continued and, after Audrino saved a header from Rilana Ueltschi, the same striker scored the third from a corner, despite a desperate attempt by Antonella Albertini to clear the ball.
The bianconeri finally managed to come out of their shell just before the half-hour mark and test Leyla Laubscher’s reflexes through Mia von Ballmoos, who, played in by Aline Oliva, fired on target only to see the ball saved at the ground by the opposing goalkeeper. After that, it was her direct opponent Audrino who denied El Yamani a goal. However, El Yamani proved tenacious and skilful in the 39th minute, when she made it four with a fine diagonal shot from the edge of the box. The first half ended with the home side smiling. The next move saw the score change to 4–0 on the display and the score sheet. Oliva played the ball to Sabina Di Muro, whose first attempt was blocked. The number 17 then played a through ball between the lines to Mathilda Andreoli, who found the net with a shot into the far corner.
The second half was, as one might expect, less exciting in terms of chances compared to the opening forty-five minutes. That did not, however, mean the battle for every loose ball let up. Thus, the only real threat in the third quarter of the match came in the 52nd minute, when Audrino parried Antonela Grgić’s right-footed shot. A flurry of substitutions preceded a shot sailing high over the bar from substitute Janine Minnig and a chance for Antonella Albertini. The attacking midfielder timed her run perfectly to meet Oliva’s cross – having reached the byline following an excellent combination with Andreoli – but was thwarted by the Bernese defence, which deflected her left-footed shot over the bar.
The home side’s final substitution saw Lara Milosavljević move to the left-back position and Oliva shift over to the right-back position. The fact that they managed to keep the score level with ten minutes remaining is to be regarded as a positive. However, it was difficult to maintain that until the final whistle. And the inevitable consequence – albeit a rather harsh one – came in the final ten minutes of play. In the 80th minute, it was Jud (with a perfect first touch inside the box and a quick, winning finish) who added her name to the scoresheet once again. Seven minutes later, Lara Colpi crossed the ball to seal the victory, whilst less than sixty seconds after that, Rebecca Villena celebrated with a left-footed strike from distance that sailed over Audrino. Meanwhile, there was a moment when the Lugano side protested against the disallowing of a goal (which appeared to be valid, particularly given the player’s offside position) by Andreoli. The closing stages were once again dominated by the Swiss-German side, with Colpi’s attempt hitting the post.
It was clear that this midweek fixture would be a tough mountain to climb. And the pitch confirmed it. Objectively speaking, even though the aim is always to take all three points wherever we play and against any opponent, this wasn’t the match we had to win. Not out of resignation or arrogance, but out of realism. Now, the girls – eleventh on 4 points – will have ten days to prepare for their next fixture – the AXA Women’s Cup round of 16 is scheduled for the weekend – which is scheduled for Saturday 31 October 2026 at 6.00 pm away at Oerlikon/Polizei ZH, who sit bottom of the table still on 0 points.
As usual, we turn to manager Andrea Antonelli for his thoughts on his players’ performance under the skies at Maglio di Canobbio: “The girls held their own very well on the pitch, worked incredibly hard as usual and remained organised for practically the whole match. Then, in the final quarter of an hour, we ran out of steam and the result took a turn for the worse. Thun’s superiority is clear, but a scoreline like this is too much. We didn’t deserve to lose by this margin. However, we must build on our organisation and our determination. I’ll say it again: right up until the 75th minute, our performance was very positive. Over the next ten days, we’ll work even harder to ensure we’re ready for our next fixture. Securing a positive result against Oerlikon will help us in the table, but also boost our morale. Because continuing to play in a certain way and getting nothing in return is frustrating. It will be a very important match. Coming into it after this heavy defeat – which we must put behind us straight away – isn’t easy, but we have a few more days’ preparation to ensure we’re in the best possible shape.”
MATCH REPORT
Women’s National League B, Matchday 10
Al Maglio Sports Centre, Canobbio – 50 spectators
FC LUGANO – FC THUN 1–7 (1–4)
GOALS: 13’ Ruf 0–1, 15’ Jud 0–2, 21’ Ueltschi 0–3, 39’ El Yamani 0–4, 40’ Andreoli 1–4, 80’ Jud 1–5, 87’ Colpi 1–6, 88’ Villena 1–7.
FC LUGANO (4-2-1-3): Audrino; Milosavljević, Colombo, Zanaboni, Di Mauro (78’ Forte Calatti); Albertini, von Ballmoos; Di Muro (56’ Aio); Oliva, Andreoli, C. Manca (67’ Dalić).
Substitutes: Gallesio, Rossi, T. Manca.
Manager: Andrea Antonelli.
FC THUN (4-2-3-1): Laubscher; C. Schmid (67’ Jost), Wenger, Frei, Stefanova; S. Schmid (46’ Almert), Ruf; Grgić (72’ Colpi), El Yamani (67’ Villena), Ueltschi (46’ Minnig); Jud.
Substitutes: Willimann.
Manager: Emil Inauen.
REFEREE: Lukas Koch.
ASSISTANT REFEREES: Nico Gattiker and Jill Meyer.
BOOKED: 79' Jud.