Player Ratings: Real Madrid Femenino 3 - 1 Sevilla

The long wait to see Real Madrid Femenino back in league action finally ended in yesterday’s 3-1 victory over Sevilla. The game saw Sofie Svava make her debut for Las Blancas while Kosovare Asllani returned to action.

Alberto Toril lined the team up in a 4231, continuing the trend of playing Maite as the #10. Caroline Møller Hansen started out as the striker while Olga was deployed on the left wing to accommodate Svava at left back. The game was chaotic, with Real Madrid running out as eventual winners with goals from Maite, Zornoza, and Athenea.

Madrid currently sit in 7th position with 26 points from 16 games, 9 points behind Atlético Madrid in 3rd.

Here are the player ratings for the game.

Starting XI

GK: Misa — 6.5/10

Misa was directly at fault for the first goal when she came out and was unable to claim the cross. However, later on, she saved a 1v1 and controlled a shot by trapping it with her chest, highlighting the chaos that ensued in the game. She was quick off her line to sweep up danger as well.

LB: Sofie Svava — 7/10

It was a decent debut for Svava at LB, a role which she in which she will probably play a lot more. Her partnership with Olga on the left was decent but didn’t help Olga as both wanted to drift outwards. Svava had a good cross early on giving us a glimpse of what to expect. She was good defensively on most occasions and covered space quite well.

LCB: Ivana Andrés — 7/10

Toril has often deployed Ivana as the LCB akin to her Levante days, which does affect us a little in possession in regards to how we progress the ball. She stepped out of her position in the 33rd minute but failed to intercept, which left acres of space for Sevilla and almost resulted in a goal.

RCB: Babett Peter — 8/10

Babett was solid in the game and swept up every danger Sevilla threw at Madrid. She recovered well and was excellent in defensive 1v1’s, making solid tackles and marking runners well. She even managed to do some bits in the attacking third when she put a good cross in after a backheel from Maite and looked decent in possession.

RB: Kenti Robles — 6.5/10

Kenti had some good moments on the right with some promising combinations with Maite and Cardona. She wasn’t heavily involved in possession when playing out from the back and was rather safe on the ball in Madrid’s own half. She kept track of Sevilla’s wingers quite well.

CM: Aurélie Kaci — 7.5/10

Kaci contributed here and there in possession and was always present to provide support wherever necessary. She added steel in midfield with her tackling and physical presence and covered ground quite well. She did commit a reckless foul and picked up a yellow. The first goal started with a great first touch into space by Kaci who then passed it to Zornoza.

CM: Claudia Zornoza — 7.5/10

One of Zornoza’s main strengths is her ability to take shots from distance and it was on display once again as she fired a rocket into the goal with her weaker right foot. It was her incisive pass that allowed Olga to run in behind for the assist on the first goal. Although there were some sloppy passes sprinkled here and there, she went off to applause by the home fans.

LW: Olga Carmona — 7/10

Olga had a decent game where she picked up an assist for the equalizer but didn’t look overly comfortable playing with an overlapping LB. She lost possession a fair few times while drifting inwards to vacate space for Svava on the overlap.

AM: Maite Oroz — 8.5/10

Maite was simply sensational, reprising her favorable role as an attacking midfielder. Her pressing was brilliant and helped Madrid regain possession multiple times. Her spatial awareness to drift into space to receive the ball in dangerous positions was fantastic and allowed Madrid to link between the thirds pretty well. She joined Møller up top without the possession and carried the press from the front.

Maite’s vision was also on show, as she was constantly aware of her teammates and found them with ease thanks to her intelligent body orientation. Her distribution helped Madrid move through the gears quickly. She scored a goal and grabbed an assist over ninety minutes.

RW/LW: Athenea del Castillo — 8/10

Another day, another goal right in the top corner for the Spaniard, although this time the situation wasn’t self-created. Athenea did the usual by running at the back line and taking on players and beating them with ease. She turned defenders — multiple of them, at times — inside out with her quick change of pace and trickery.

ST: Caroline Møller Hansen — 7/10

Møller was deployed as the lone striker up front and she did have some good moments but it was when she dropped off with her back to goal to lay it off for others and follow it up with a run in behind that she was the most dangerous. She was an excellent outlet and could have had a goal for herself. She also had a penalty call go against her strangely.

Substitutes

RW: Marta Cardona — 7/10 (Replaced Olga in the 64th min)

This was Cardona’s best individual game since her return from injury. She was seen taking on players, creating spaces for others, and attacking the defense like before. Her movements inside opened up avenues out wide on the far side as well. There is still some rust that will go away with more game time but the signs were encouraging.

CM: Teresa Abelleira — 7/10 (replaced Zornoza; 64’)

Tere’s substitution brought a sense of calm in possession and her deliveries were good from set-piece situations.

AM/LW: Kosovare Asllani — 7.5/10 (replaced Møller; 74’)

Asllani could have had a brace of her own after coming on. She struck the post once and was denied thrice by Esther Sullastres. Asllani was great receiving on the half-turn and carrying the ball and provided support and creation through her movements. She also fashioned a chance for Esther via a low cross.

ST: Esther González — N/A (replaced Athenea; 85’)

Made a good run into the box but failed to connect with the low cross by Asllani in the 89th minute. Lost the ball a couple of times while dropping deep.

RB: Lucía Rodríguez — N/A (replaced Kenti; 85’)

She had a good ball-carrying moment.