March 23, (THEWILL) – Barcelona Women fought back from a 1-0 deficit in the first half to score three goals in the second half and seize control of their Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid.
Barca should have scored more, but they still have a comfortable lead going into the return leg at Camp Nou on Wednesday.
Real started the game with a lot of pressure, finding ways over and past the Barça defence. This paid off in the eighth minute when Esther Gonzalez carried the ball forward, slipped the ball out to the left, and Olga Carmona scored across Barca keeper Sandra Panos from inside the area.
The visitors could not get into a rhythm and did not have their first shot until 26 minutes, when Misa Rodriguez, in the Real goal post, stopped a Patri Guijarro attempt from the edge of the area with her right hand.
Real continued to threaten, and in the 38th minute, the energetic Gonzalez hit the post before Panos stopped another of her attempts before the interval.
Barca looked considerably more at ease after the break, and, after a VAR intervention, the visitors were awarded a penalty six minutes in. Alexia Putellas equalised by slamming it into the right side of the goal.
Gonzalez remained a menace for the hosts, and substitute Claudia Pina could have scored Barca’s second goal in the second half. The scores remained tied at one apiece with the contest on the verge of being decided that way.
But, Barca gradually took control, creating chances, even though the desired second goal remained elusive. Irene Paredes returned from injury to form a defensive partnership with Mapi Leon.
For the lead goal for Barca, Pina got onto a rebound after an Aitana Bonmati shot and blasted low and hard past Misa to make it 1-2 in the 81st minute as just reward for all the efforts Barca was making and the chances they were creating.
Putellas, the world’s best footballer, still had time to finish her double, lifting the ball over Misa to send the defending Champions to the reverse quarter-final fixture at Camp Nou on Wednesday March 30 with a far more comfortable result and undiluted confidence.
The win marks another reference point of Barca’s current dominance over their arch-rivals at the highly competitive El Clasicos. As THEWILL reported, the men’s Barca team snapped a five-game losing streak against Real Madrid in spectacular fashion on Sunday, winning their Clasico 4-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Much like the Barca Femeni, Xavi’s side dominated from the start and led 2-0 at half-time with goals from the rejuvenated Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Ronald Araujo. Ferran Torres and Aubameyang, again, completed the scoring before the hour mark.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
