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Lauren Hemp signed a new three-year deal with Manchester City in April Manchester City forward Lauren Hemp said the club are "ready to make a statement" in the Women's Champions League as they begin their qualifying campaign on Wednesday. Last season's Women's Super League (WSL) runners-up will play Paris FC across two legs, with the winner advancing to the group stage. City are playing in the Champions League for the first time since 2022 after failing to qualify last season. Hemp, 24, said: "I obviously signed for City because I wanted to win trophies. I believe this is a club that can go on to do that. "We have big ambitions to win this season across all of the competitions. We have learned from previous years the difference we need to make. " City have reached the Champions League semi-finals twice, last doing so in 2018. Hemp believes manager Gareth Taylor's squad have the experience required to go far. "We have got so many experienced girls in the squad that have been in World Cup finals and Champions League games at later stages, so we know what it takes to win, " she said. "We’re all feeling fresh and ready to go and to make a statement in the Champions League. " Manchester City manager Gareth Taylor saw his side narrowly miss out on a trophy on the last day of the WSL season in May City had a busy summer transfer window, bringing in six new players and boss Taylor believes the squad depth will help his side this season. "We understand the challenges in front of us and it will be tough but it is not just in the Champions League, but in general [squad depth] will help us a lot, " said Taylor. "We have been open and honest about last season and how well we did as a team. Towards the end of the season when we lost key players that strength in depth probably wasn’t there. "We’ve tried to fix that this summer and we’ve probably got more attacking options at the top end of the pitch to change some game moments. " Taylor is not worried about a fixture pile-up however, and is excited about the prospect of more games. "We want to be in that situation where we’re in the Champions League and hopefully playing a game every three or four days, " he said. "We want many players who are capable of playing in each game. The team will change no doubt if that situation arises because it’s really difficult - that level of game you are playing is really physically demanding. " The Paris FC match will also be City's first competitive game of the season, before their WSL opener against Arsenal on Sunday. Last Updated 25th May 2024 at 20: 28 Please Note: All times UK. Tables are subject to change. The BBC is not responsible for any changes that may be made. UEFA Women's Champions League All competitions © 2024 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.