March 31, (THEWILL) – Defending champions, Barcelona Femeni, secured their place in the Women’s Champions League semi-finals with a 5-2 win (8-3 on aggregate) over fierce rivals Real Madrid at the Nou Camp, cheered on by a world record crowd of 91,533 fans.
Although the women’s team has previously played in the club’s iconic arena, the atmosphere was very different this time. Last time they played, they were met with silence as they hammered Espanyol 5-0 in January, due to the height of COVID restrictions, which meant no one was present to watch.
After 14 months, the players were met with a breathtaking visual show around the stadium, which included a mosaic of supporters holding placards that said “More Than Empowerment” to send a powerful statement about gender equality.
The yellows and reds of the Catalan flag provided a colourful backdrop, but the choice was made to place the wording in English in the hopes of a wider audience taking note in the European competition.
With a 3-1 lead from the first leg and a raucous home crowd behind them, Barcelona were determined to put the tie to bed as soon as possible. Within ten minutes, Mara Pilar León looped a shot into the net.
Madrid, on the other hand, gave themselves hope by levelling the scores just five minutes later, with Olga Carmona converting from the penalty spot after her initial shot was stopped by Irene Paredes’ hand.
Claudia Zornoza scored from over 40 yards out, lobbing Sandra Panos, who was off her line, just after halftime, making an incredible Madrid comeback even more likely. The visitors had taken the lead for the night, but they trailed by one goal on aggregate.
As Madrid began to dream of a miraculous comeback, Barcelona reacted in style, scoring two goals in two minutes, with Aitana Bonmati and Claudia Pina scoring to put Barcelona 6-3 up over the two legs.
Any hope of Madrid clawing their way back into the game was dashed when Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas decided to join in the fun, scoring her team’s fourth goal of the night.
Barcelona were determined to inflict as much agony on their rivals as possible in true El Clasico form, and Caroline Graham Hansen added to Madrid’s misery by thumping home another with twenty minutes remaining.
No more goals were scored, but there was a big celebration atmosphere as many in attendance realised they had watched something momentous as the winning machine that is Barca Femeni kept chugging along and taking no prisoners.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
