Barcelona Femeni secured a narrow victory over Atletico de Madrid yesterday in their fifth Liga F game of the season. The league champions held onto a single goal scored in the second half of the game and secured a 1-0 win over their counterparts.
Alexia Putellas scored in the 51st minute of the game to continue the Blaugrana’s winning run and maintain their position at the top of the table.
Here are a few things that were noticed during the game:
Barcelona’s away struggles continue
Prior to the match against Atletico, Barcelona won their last two games played at home convincingly. A 6-0 demolition of Valencia and a 3-0 victory over Real Sociedad were proof of the Blaugrana’s dominance and quality.
However, the first two games were played away from home, and the champions struggled to get a win despite putting up an impressive performance. A 2-0 victory away to Madrid CFF in the first game of the season, followed by a 2-1 victory over Sporting Huelva, did not do justice to the Catalan side’s dominance in both games.
The champions were faced with the same situation again when they faced Atletico Madrid away from home. A narrow victory that saw them emerge as eventual 1-0 winners in what was their most challenging game so far this season.
Barcelona had to wait till the second half before getting a goal and had their backline and brilliant goalkeeper to thank for maintaining their lead in the last ten minutes of the game.
Alexia makes history
Alexia Putellas scored Barcelona’s only goal yesterday and cemented her status as the club’s all-time leading goalscorer. The goal was her 182nd for the club, and she pulled one clear of Jennifer Hermoso on the list.
With Alexia still very much present at the club, there are still loads of goals to come from the two-time Ballon d’Or winner.
Paralluelo’s return from injury
The Spanish forward had missed all of Barcelona’s games this season due to a knee injury and was introduced back to football action yesterday. The youngster immediately sparkled upon coming on with an attempt from 20 yards that forced a save from the goalkeeper.
Salma Paralluelo was brought on to replace Esmee Brugts in the second half after the latter was involved in creating the only game of the match.
Oshoala starts from the bench again
Barcelona’s top scorer for the past two seasons, Asisat Oshoala, once again failed to make the starting lineup. The striker has been coming on as a substitute in her last four appearances, with Alexia Putellas getting the nod ahead of the Nigerian forward to spearhead the team’s attack.
Getting back into the starting lineup seems even more difficult for Oshoala with Alexia’s current goal-scoring form. The team’s captain has now scored two goals in her last two games, setting a record for herself.
Barcelona will be in action again on October 21 when they face Granada at home in the Liga F.
