Real Madrid 2-6 Barcelona: Hosts hit for six in first leg of UWCL quarter-final | OneFootball

Real Madrid suffered a hefty defeat in the first leg of their UEFA Women’s Champions League quarter-final against Barcelona, with Pere Romeu’s side taking a four-goal advantage back to the Spotify Camp Nou.

Ewa Pajor and Esmée Brugts scored early at the Estadio Alfredo di Stéfano, and while Linda Caicedo was able to pull a goal back with 30 minutes played, Irene Paredes endured Barça carried a two-goal margin into half time.

Pajor and Caicedo both netted their second goals of the evening before the visitors ran away with proceedings, as Vicky López and then Alexia Putellas got on the scoresheet to secure a 2-6 win in the first of three consecutive Clásicos.

Real Madrid will host Barcelona in Liga F action this weekend, with attention then turning to next Thursday’s second leg at the Spotify Camp Nou.

As it happened

A bright start from Barcelona – who have been dominant in Europe in recent years, winning the UEFA Women’s Champions League in two of the past three seasons – saw the smart Patri Guijarro dink a ball over the top of the hosts’ defence, allowing Alexia Putellas to tee up Ewa Pajor for a close-range finish with just six minutes on the clock.

Pere Romeu would have been thrilled with his side’s start to the contest, as Barça doubled their lead less than ten minutes later when a Vicky López cross created a chance for Esmée Brugts to nod towards goal. The Dutch international saw Misa Rodriguez get a hand to her effort, but the goalkeeper’s attempts to keep it out of the net were in vain.

Pajor was sent through on goal by Putellas and should have scored the visitors’ third of the evening with just 17 minutes played in the Spanish capital, though the Polish forward buckled under pressure in a one-on-one against the goalkeeper and squandered a fantastic chance.

Real Madrid were able to claw a goal back on the half-hour mark through Linda Caicedo, who did successfully manage to find a way past Irene Paredes and Cata Coll after being played through on the right flank by Athenea del Castillo.

But Pau Quesada’s side were unable to push forward in search of an equaliser, and instead found themselves pegged back once more by a Barça side chasing their eighth consecutive semi-final appearance in this competition. Claùdia Pina’s corner delivery from the right was met by Paredes, who nodded a thunderous effort past Rodríguez to restore the visitors’ two-goal advantage.

Bad turned to worse for Real Madrid in the second half, as 18-year-old Clara Serrajordi forayed forward and split the hosts’ defence with a perfectly weighted through ball for Pajor, who slotted a first-time finish past the goalkeeper to complete her brace.

And the rout did not stop there, as Caroline Graham Hansen did well to jink past Sara Holmgaard before delivering a cross into the box that was tucked away with aplomb by López from the penalty spot.

In his pre-match press conference, Pere Romeu had singled out Real Madrid’s ability to hit them on the counterattack as one of the key threats his side would face – and the 32-year-old was proven right with 66 minutes on the clock, as Pajor’s cross was snuffed out by Filippa Angeldahl and booted up towards Caicedo. The 21-year-old Colombian international did well to work her way infield from the left flank, cutting beyond Paredes to pick out the top corner from the edge of the box.

But Real Madrid were able to clinch their sixth goal of the night in the dying minutes, as Holmgaard slid in from behind on Graham Hansen inside the penalty area, allowing Putellas to roll the ball under Rodríguez from 12 yards out after a brief VAR check.

Barcelona carry a comfortable four-goal lead back to the Spotify Camp Nou ahead of next Thursday’s second leg – but the two sides will meet again before then, with a Liga F clash scheduled to take place in the Spanish capital this weekend.