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Real Madrid Femenino recorded a comfortable 4-1 victory over Espanyol to make it two wins in the last two after dropping 5 points vs. Sevilla and Real Sociedad. This keeps Madrid in third going into the critical encounters vs. Champions League qualification rivals Atlético Madrid and Levante. Below are my immediate thoughts on the match. Player ratings and post-match pod to follow.
David Aznar is not one to shy away from throwing out strange lineups and today was no exception. He went with something that appeared normal enough, with attackers Sofia Jakobsson, Jessica Martínez, and Lorena Navarro and midfielders Teresa Abelleira, Thaisa, and Aurélie Kaci, but deployed them in a 4-4-2. Sofia played out on the right while Teresa operated in a sort of pseudo-left wing position. That went about as well as you might think. Real Madrid still had the individual quality to threaten but the efficiency of circulation and frequency of q
Player Ratings: Real Madrid Femenino 4 - 1 Espanyol
Jessica Martinez shines in Las Blancas’ 4-1 win.
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Real Madrid Femenino won their second straight match with their victory over Espanyol 4-1. Las Blancas were propelled by a Jessica Martínez brace and goals from Lorena Navarro and Marta Cardona.
Player Ratings:
Misa 6/10: Misa was relatively untested on the day. She cut out danger by coming off her line quickly. Misa made one save but only faced two shots on target. She was beaten by Brenda for Espanyol’s only goal in a 1v1 situation.
Below are my immediate thoughts on the game. Player ratings and post-match pod to follow.
Real Madrid Femenino burst out of the gates pressing with a ferocious intensity. Aurélie Kaci stepped up alongside Kosovare Asllani in a 4-4-2 structure and harried Real Sociedad’s center-backs into early mistakes, creating a nice counter-attacking action that saw Asllani’s attempt off the cut-back saved.
There was a positive general synergy flowing throughout the team in the opening minutes. As Real Sociedad tried to figure out how to establish their possession game, Las Blancas thrived in transition. In the 11th minute, Cardona was unleashed down the right and she cut inside past two players to curl an absolute pearler from distance.