Player Ratings: Madrid CFF 1 - 3 Real Madrid Femenino

Real Madrid faced off against Madrid CFF in a derby game needing all three points. Las Blancas got the job done but left it too late. A brace from Esther, who continued her good form in front of goal, and a wonder-strike from Athenea helped secure the win. Esther has now scored 4 times in the last 5 games.

Toril decided to line up in a 4-4-2 with both Esther and Nahikari up front after Asllani picked up a knock in the previous game. Møller and Cardona started as wide players while Teresa and Zornoza were preferred in the middle of the park. Lucía was given the nod at RB over Kenti. The formation was switched up to 3-4-1-2/3-5-2 after an injury to Olga Carmona. The subsequent formation resulted in Madrid generating some good opportunities.

Here are the player ratings from the game.

Starting XI

GK: Misa — 6/10

Came off her line dangerously in the early mins and almost had a shaky moment. Wasn’t really called into action a lot but made some solid stops.

LB: Olga Carmona — 7/10

Olga displayed good recovery pace to get back and help defend some transition opportunities from Madrid CFF. Unfortunately Olga’s time on the pitch was cut short after she took a nasty blow following a cross from Kerolin. The good news is that there has been no fracture. Wishing her a speedy recovery.

RCB: Babett Peter — 6.5/10

Babett was positioned as the RCB which seemed a little weird, given Rocío’s switches could have been better utilized from the right side and Madrid could have used those switches to build attacks. She was decent in the game.

LCB: Rocío Gálvez — 6.5/10

Starting as a LCB, Rocío couldn’t use her long switches with the right foot. She was decent in her duels and later moved into the middle CB role in the back 3. She was good at covering ground but allowed the runner a lot of space while stepping up a few times .

RB: Lucía Rodríguez — 6/10

Lucía didn’t have a good game. Her passing was really sloppy, couldn’t combine well with Cardona, and failed to utilize her ball-carrying ability.

CM: Teresa Abelleira — 7.5/10

Teresa being good on the ball isn’t surprising at all. She displayed some good moments where she turned away from pressure and tried to make things happen and had a couple of shots from distance.

CM: Claudia Zornoza — 7/10

Zornoza’s deliveries were once again crucial in Madrid’s chance creation and resulted in Madrid’s first goal. It’s off the ball where Zornoza really suffers, as she often fails to track the runner. She tried her luck from range a couple of times as well.

RM: Marta Cardona — 6.5/10

Cardona is still a little rusty coming back from injury. She had some good moments like the cross to the far post in the opening 10 mins. Some of her touches were poor and they resulted in turnover and transition opportunities for the opposition. She grew into the game and one hopes that she will be back to her best soon with more mins.

LM: Caroline Møller Hansen — 7/10

Møller was brilliant again. She constantly threatened with her runs in the box and got on the end of some crosses while putting in some deliveries herself. She helped out in defense as well.

CF: Nahikari García — 6/10

Things aren’t quite clicking for Nahikari so far. She is struggling to get amongst the goals. She had a good moment where she took a touch to set up Esther for a shot in the first half

CF: Esther González — 8.5/10

Esther was heavily involved again, this time scoring a brace to help complete the comeback. The 2nd goal was absolutely brilliant; she received, turned, laid it off for Teresa, and then received it back and slotted it home with her left foot. She had plenty more chances to score but was either denied or missed them. She linked up well with others while dropping deep and contributed defensively.

Substitutes

RB/RWB: Kenti Robles — 7.5/10 (replaced Lucía; 60’)

Kenti maintained width on the right and Maite’s presence in the middle helped vacate space for the fullback to cross the ball into the box. Her crosses were really threatening and helped Madrid create chances.

LM/LWB: Athenea del Castillo — 8.5/10 (replaced Nahikari; 60’)

Athenea’s gem of a strike from the edge of the box in stoppage time completed the comeback. She was constantly a menace to deal with and brought a sense of directness to the attack, dazzling as a ball carrier. She was moved into a wing-back role after the departure of Olga.

LCB: Ivana Andrés — 7/10 (replaced Olga; 67’)

Ivana’s introduction and Madrid’s shift to a back 3 helped them massively in the offensive phase. She helped with her on ball abilities.

CAM: Maite Oroz — 8/10 (replaced Cardona; 67’)

Maite’s introduction swung things in Madrid’s favor. She helped create dominance in the middle by helping create overloads in the middle of the pitch. Her introduction helped bring a sense of fluidity in possession and she facilitated connections in the final third. Her pressing to help cause turnovers high up the pitch was really effective as well.

CM: Kaci — NA (replaced Møller; 95’)

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