FC Barcelona Femení vs Real Madrid Femenino, summary: Rolfo penalty, score, goals & highlights | Liga F 2022/23
FC Barcelona vs Real Madrid, Liga F: as it happened
Signing off...
OK, that's all for the coverage of the Liga F game between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Thanks for joining me and I hope that we can get more women's football in your eyes and on your screens in the near future!
Make sure to check out en.as.com for everything football, and everything else.
Joe
The crowd enjoyed that goal...
It's not the oldest rivalry in women's football, but a Clásico is a Clásico in whatever sport you can think of...
Full time: FC Barcelona 1-0 Real Madrid, Liga F
OK, those are 3 well-earned points for FC Barcelona Femení, who had to graft at times in a very stodgy game of Liga F football. In the first half, most of the chances fell to the home side, but they very rarely created anything genuinely dangerous.
Madrid, for their part, started very strongly and defended well in the first half: the return of Kathellen to the side was a clear bonus for them, who partnered Ivana well.
The last stage of the first period was where things could have got dicey for Barça, as Madrid began to control more of the ball and Weir started to win the midfield battle against Aitana and Patri. No goals came and the two sides went into the dressing rooms at half time with nothing to show for their efforts.
The second half was a different story: Barça came out flying like Madrid did in the first and immediately put Madrid back into their box to defend. Aitana, who had been invisible for most of the first half, came to life and the strength of the home bench also came into play, with Walsh, Oshoala and Hansen offering oodles of quality when they were introduced.
The goal came as Salma - who was lively for the whole game - was brought down by Athenea and Rolfö slid the ball into the net for Barça to go 13 clear at the top.
FULL TIME!
Ivana's interception flies just wide of her own goal after Madrid get caught out high up the pitch and Hansen is allowed to fire in a low cross.
Into the final minute as Madrid make one last push...
Aitana has a shot from inside the box that flies over the bar. 90 seconds to go.
Athenea fouls Rolfö who is in no rush to get off the floor as the clock ticks on.
4 minutes added.
30 seconds of normal time to go...
"Being a Barça fan is the best thing in the world" is the fans' song of choice as the home side look to see the game out by keeping the ball.
Rolfö fires wide from the left after Barcelona break quickly.
Danger for Madrid as Hansen drives diagonally inside from the right and causes all sorts of problems. Madrid holding on as things stand.
Zornoza OFF
Freja Siri ON
Aitana gets a 'woooo' from the crowd after skipping past one then two Madrid players on the edge of her own box. Her increased influence in the latter stages of this game has been crucial for the home side.
Barça make a change:
Salma OFF
VickyLópez ON
HUGE CHANCE FOR BARÇA!
Bronze gets a cross in that lands at Patri's feet inside the box but the Spaniard can't turn to shoot and her effort spins wide.
TOLETTI FIRES AT PAÑOS!
Madrid worked well down the left and the ball fell to the French midfielder who arrived late into the box. Her shot was easily caught by Sandra Paños.
Ten to go...
Patri gets on the end of Hansen's cross from the right but her header is nodded wide of Misa in the Madrid goal.
Barça want more; Madrid look flustered and, in all honesty, pretty annoyed.
Back underway.
Ah, the VAR-less life.
As calm as you like. Rolfö sends Misa the wrong way and taps the penalty into the bottom left corner for her 8th goal of the season.
A free-kick was taken quickly and sent into the box where Salma took it down and was pushed by Athenea (who gets booked).
It was very weak, but there is no VAR and that's the final decision.
Rolfö to take...
PENALTY TO BARÇA!
Athenea brought down Salma inside the box!
Just over fifteen minutes of normal time to go, and Barça have stepped up a gear, forcing Misa into a few saves from tentative shots. Salma the latest to fire on target from a header.
Barcelona are starting to press Madrid back again, and it's no coincidence that Aitana has had a more active last few minutes. So much goes through her, especially with the absence of Alexia, and her lack of influence on the game today has been very noticeable.
More Madrid subs:
Maite and Linda OFF
Athenea and Olga ON
HUGE CHANCE FOR BARÇA!
A cross from Patri is floated over the head of Svava and Hansen gets her head on the ball at the back post; saved by Misa.
Linda Caicedo gets back to tackle Hansen who worked her way into her favourite place on the pitch down the right side. Excellent defensive work from the young Colombian.
MartaTorrejón OFF
Irene Paredes ON
SO CLOSE FROM PATRI!
Misa's clearance was shocking and spun in the air before landing at the feet of Patri, who fired a missile towards goal from the edge of the box that took some paint off the post.
Salma bursts into the box from the left after stealing the ball from Maite, forcing Kenti into a great challenge at the last second.
Olga and Athenea are warming up for Madrid...
Misa comes out to collect a cross from Salma on the left side after she spun away from Kenti Robles.
Madrid work the ball well from right to left but Svava's cross is terrible and flies over the heads of at least 4 Real Madrid attackers.
FC Barcelona subs:
Crnogorcevic, Geyse and Engen OFF
Walsh, Oshoala and Hansen ON
Madrid make a change:
Esther OFF
Feller ON
Barça are preparing changes...
CHANCE FOR MADRID!
Linda's cross is met my a perfect Weir touch that plucks the ball from the air. She spins and shoots from inside the box but her effort is wide.
Patri spies Misa off her line and hits a long-range effort towards goal. Misa saves.
Misa's under-hit pass out from the back puts Kathellen under pressure and she loses the ball in her own half. Barça launch a counter-attack but luckily for the away side Zornoza is there to steal the ball from Patri on the edge of the box.
Madrid counter and Weir's pass through the lines is cut out. The game is opening up...
Madrid move the ball well at the back and break down their right side. Weir gets the ball in the right half-space but her attempt at playing Esther through is cut out.
Linda Caicedo can't get on the end of a cross-field ball that bounces out. She's not had the best game of her life today, and has been relatively quiet on the left side against Lucy Bronze.
MISA SAVES!
The shot slid through the wall and bounced awkwardly in front of the Madrid goalkeeper, who caught the ball.
Mapi to take...
A very dangerous foul is given for Barça after Geyse is brought down by Svava. The free-kick is on the line of the box on the right side.
Barcelona have come out for the second half with the confidence that Madrid had when the first finished. They've got Las Blancas pushed right back into their defensive third and are flicking passes in and out to search for space.
Crnogorcevic gets on the end of Mapi's cross but she thwacks it with her thigh - the ball bounces wide.
Svava gets one back for her teammate and brings down Geyse after the game restarts. Free-kick on the right side for Barça.
And an instant yellow for Geyse, who stands on Ivana's ankle. She's lucky to get away with that.
And we're off for the second half; Esther gets the ball rolling.
And we've got a new record at the stadium - over 5,000 fans are inside - the most ever at the ground!
The players are back out for the second half!
Here's how the atmosphere looks at the Estadi Johan Cruyff!
Another sell-out for Barça and what a huge noise the fans are making today!
Madrid must be happy with that!
They have defended well and kept Barcelona at bay for 45 minutes. The challenge will be to keep the intensity up for another 45 minutes.
Half time!
Barça manager Giráldez takes out his notebook as he walks down the tunnel.
Esther finds herself in a position to shoot and fires towards Paños' goal, but her effort is just wide after getting shoved by Engen at the last second.
One minute added.
Linda caught offside again which stops a promising Madrid move down the left side.
Claudia Zornoza gets the first yellow card of the game after a late challenge on Patri Guijarro.
Bronze's cross bobbles out after receiving the ball from Aitana's chipped pass over the heads of the Madrid defence.
Real Madrid do very well down the left between Linda, Svava, Zornoza and Toletti, who slides a pass into Maite inside the Barça box, which is cut out by Bronze at the last second after a slightly heavy touch from the midfielder.
CLOSE FROM MADRID!
Linda got in behind the Barça defence and Weir played her in behind, but the replay shows that she was just a few centimetres offside!
Rolfö can't get to a pass down the left from Patri, who throws her hands on her head in frustration.
Real Madrid have looked a lot more comfortable over the past 5-10 minutes, with more possession and arrivals into Barcelona's half.
Chance for Madrid!
Weir hits a long range shot towards Sandra Paños who has to get down quickly to force the save.
Madrid have a go at an attack with Linda and Esther, who manage to get the ball down Barça's right side after some calm possession at the back. The Catalan team do well to cut it out before reinforcements arrive for the visitors.
Crnogorcevic heads a corner towards Misa, who saves comfortably. The first shot on target of the game.
Parti and Rolfö work the ball well together down Madrid's right and Toletti (again) saves the day with an excellently-timed challenge in the box.
Weir makes a break down Madrid's left after winning the ball from Marta Torrejón; Bronze defends well and Madrid win a corner.
Linda drops deep to aid with Madrid's buildup but Barça press high and win the ball from Svava.
Aitana slips in a wonderful reverse pass for Crnogorcevic but Svava covers well.
Salma sends Zornoza scrambling and collecting her dignity from the floor with a delightful turn on the edge of the box before hitting a low cross into the box that is fired over by Marta Torrejón.
She plays it short to Patri who gives it straight back to the defender to cross in, and Maite clears out for a corner on the other side.
Corner for Barça, Mapi León to take...
Mapi takes a strangely loose touch to control a clearance from Kenti and allows Esther to take the ball. In classic Mapi fashion, she slips goalside of the player and times her challenge perfectly.
Barça are stepping up the pace now: Bronze gets in behind Svava and hits a dangerous cross that flashes low inside the box before Mapi tries her luck from distance. Wide.
Barcelona are probing away like curious aliens, looking for spaces in between the Madrid web of defence.
Geyse wiggles and squirms in the central space before leaving the ball to Rolfö on the left. Misa catches the lofted cross with ease and Madrid take a deep breath.
Twenty minutes in and it's the home side who have had the best chances but Madrid will be happy with how they are coping with the attacking talent of the hosts.
Caroline Weir gets her first solid touches on the ball and sends poor Salma looking for her as the Madrid midfielder twists and turns on the right side of the pitch.
Toletti then makes a simply fantastic challenge on Salma after Madrid allowed the ex-Villarreal forward to find space on the edge of the box. It was pretty much where she scored from against Roma midweek.
Brazilian vs Brazilian as Kathellen wins the battle and the race against Geyse and stops another searching Barcelona ball in behind the away side's defence.
We've had a few minutes of Barça possession with some small Madrid fouls scattered in between. Nothing else to report.
Svava gets her head on a cross from Mapi and, here I go, Madrid look fairly comfortable as things stand.
Remember you can watch a live stream of this game on DAZN.
"Alexia, Alexia" rings out around the stadium. Yes, we all miss her.
A dangerous moment for the home side...
Kenti makes a great tackle on Salma but the ball falls to Patri on the left who plays in a dangerous cross to the far post that Madrid manage to defend.
Linda's flick finds Esther but the striker's first touch doesn't get past Marta Torrejón and Barcelona recover the ball.
A lot of calm possession over the last few seconds now for the home side, who have just started to find their rhythm.
Madrid's press is working well to keep them relatively at bay, but it's going to take all 11 players to be at their best physically and mentally for 80 minutes more.
Linda Caicedo tries to play a pass through to Maite on the edge of the box but Rolfö wins the battle and clears the danger. That's a few times now that the Colombian has taken the ball in a dangerous area...
BARCELONA CHANCE!
Mapi's cross was cleared out to Aitana inside the box whose shot was well defended by Ivana! That was on target!
Barça with some possession now, as they try to find their teammates in those typically team-destroying passing triangles.
Mexican right-back Kenti Robles beats Rolfö to a long free-kick and clears the danger that Barça had created on the wing.
Madrid are in a 4-2-3-1 with Zornoza and Toletti behind Linda, Weir and Maite.
Madrid midfielder Maite is pressing Rolfö very high on the right, that's going to be an interesting battle...
Barcelona have tried a few times to find Salma behind Kathellen, but the Madrid defender has covered well so far.
Madrid have started brightly, they have come flying out of the blocks, pressing Barça high up the pitch.
After a slight delay, we're off!
Geyse get the game going from right to left...
Almost time to go!
And the players are out on the pitch - what a fantastic atmosphere we've got at the Estadi Johan Cruyff!
Here we go!
The players are in the tunnel!
A reminder of the starting XIs:
FC Barcelona:
Paños
Bronze - Marta - Mapi - Rolfö
Aitana - Engen - Patri
Crnogorčević - Geyse - Salma
Manager: Jonatan Giráldez
Real Madrid XI:
Misa
Kenti - Kathellen - Ivana - Svava
Maite Oroz - Zornoza - Toletti
Weir - Esther - Linda
Manager: Alberto Toril
Fifteen minutes to go!
Go grab your popcorn or snack of choice and get ready for the Liga F action!
The players are concluding their warmups and are getting ready to go down the tunnel for the final team talk!
Real Madrid's impressive away form
Real Madrid are unbeaten away from home this season, with their two losses of the campaign coming at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stéfano against UDGTenerife and - you guessed it - Barcelona. They will be hoping to keep up their fantastic record on the road.
(By the way, the Barça players have just come onto the pitch at the Estadi Johan Cruyff to a huge cheer)
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Fridolina Rolfö starts today at left-back for Barça and she spoke to AS journalist Marta Griñán about life at the club, her hopes of Sweden co-hosting the next European Women’s Championship and, of course, the long-awaited return of Alexia.
The changing rooms are ready...
Barça are, as mentioned earlier, in their special version of the home shirt. Meanwhile, Rosalía's latest music pumps out of the stadium speakers creating an 'atmosphere', despite the fact that the stadium makes a great noise when full, which it 100% is for today's game.
Barça's form continues on the continent
Their hot streak that never seems to end extends into Europe, where they beat Roma 0-1 in the UEFA Women's Champions League last week. Salma got the only goal and it means that Barça are one step closer to the semi-finals, if they can get past the Italian side on home turf in the next leg of the tie.
El Clásico top scorers:
No surprises to see that's it's a long list of Barcelona players, but the sneaky inclusion of left-back Olga is interesting. The ex-Sevilla defender is on the bench today in place of Svava, so she'll have to wait her turn if she wants to overtake Patri, Pina and Oshoala in the list.
And it's no surprise at all to see the two-time Ballon d'Or winner Alexia at the top of the tree - when is she not top of the rankings? Unfortunately, her recovery from an ACL injury sustained last summer is still underway (although she is now able to sprint with the ball) but let's hope to see her soon!
I didn't forget!
Of course not. Anyway, Linda vs Bronze is going to be a huge battle down the Barcelona right side.
They are two very interesting XIs, with plenty of curious changes made. For starters, Marta as a central defender is an unexpected choice. And just like Bronze vs Linda, the Barça attackers (Salma - Geyse - Crnogorcevic) against a less-than-match-fresh Kathellen will no doubt be a stern test for the Brazilian.
Paredes, Oshoala, Walsh and Graham are all on the bench.
Speaking of previous records and the starting XIs, Real Madrid goalkeeper Misa is one person (of a very long list) who has had a horrid time against Barcelona.
She has conceded 42 goals in 11 games, and, believe me, not had many poor performances despite the numbers.
FC Barcelona XI:
I've not got the official tweet just yet, but here's the starting XI for the league leaders:
Paños
Bronze - Marta - Mapi - Rolfö
Aitana - Engen - Patri
Crnogorčević - Geyse - Salma
Real Madrid XI:
It's not quite Carlo Ancelotti early, but here's Toril's XI for the game today:
Misa
Kenti - Ivana - Kathellen - Svava
Maite - Zornoza - Toletti
Linda - Esther - Weir
The Rosalía theme continues...
Yes, Barça will be wearing their very cool (and very expensive) glow-in-the-dark shirt with the logo of Rosalía's latest album on the front, just like the men's team did in their 2-1 win over Real Madrid last weekend. I haven't listened to it.
Previous meetings:
Barça have won every time they've played Real Madrid, scoring 36 goals and conceding just 6.
21/22 Liga Iberdrola
Real Madrid 0-4 Barcelona
Barcelona 4-1 Real Madrid
2021/22 Spanish Super Cup
Barcelona 1-0 Real Madrid
2021/22 Liga Iberdrola
Real Madrid 1-3 Barcelona
Barcelona 5-0 Real Madrid
2021/22 Champions League
Real Madrid 1-3 Barcelona
Barcelona 5-2 Real Madrid
2021/22 Copa de la Reina
Barcelona 4-0 Real Madrid
2022/23 Liga F
Real Madrid 1-4 Barcelona
2022/23 Spanish Super Cup
Barcelona 3-1 Real Madrid
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I know, I know. You're very excited to see Linda perform in her first Clásico... me too!
But how will she get on? Can she be the difference between the two sides today?
Happy birthday, Maite!
It's Maite Oroz's birthday today!. The ex-Athletic Club midfielder turns 25, which is a fantastic thing for Real Madrid and all of us, as it means we've got lots of time to enjoy her midfield exploits on the football pitch!
PEPE ANDRES / DIARIO AS
How things look in the league:
Well, as you might have guessed, Barça are yet to lose at all this season and have 66 points from 22. Another world and there's not much else to say other than they're absolutely brilliant every single week.
Real Madrid, for their part, are having an incredibly strong season, and have only lost 2 matches (against UDG Tenerife and the return game against Barça earlier in the campaign). They have drawn just twice in a season that would, on paper, have you fighting to be champions.
Their aim, however, is to get champions League football and that’s looking like a real possibility. And if they can land a punch on FC Barcelona during the season, then that’s a bonus.
Team news: Real Madrid
There's a bit more going on in the Real Madrid infirmary...
Well, to start, the hugely positive news for Madrid is that Linda Caicedo is back in Alberto Toril’s squad to face Barça today. She hobbled off the pitch last weekend in Madrid’s shock 0-1 loss UDG Tenerife and, although she was seen walking after the game, it looked like a back injury might keep her our for some time. Luckily, she’s just 17 and at that age you’re pretty much made of plasticine and rubber bands, so she has bounced back and is presumably fit to play.
Brazilian defender Kathellen is also back in the squad, which is another huge positive as she’s been missing for a while and it’s safe to say that Madrid have not had the same levels of confidence at the back as they did previously this season.
Nahikari and Lucía are not in the squad list as well as Rocío, Lorena and Meline Gérard. Nahikari, for her part, started against UDG Tenerife and, as has become usual, huffed and puffed her way through a frustrating afternoon.
Team news: Barça
The only news regarding FCB’s squad list is the return of VickyLópez, Barça’s 16-year-old star. This season, she is breaking record just by breathing so it’s probably about time she became the youngest ever scorer in El Clásico.
Mariona, Clàudia Pina and, of course, Alexia, are all missingfortheside.
Hello!
Hello and a big, warm welcome to the football. It’s Joe here and I’m going to be taking you through one of Spain’s new/old rivalries.
It’s definitely one of the country’s most exciting fixtures and, ahem, is certainly one with a lot of goals.
Of course I’m taking about FC Barcelona Femení vs Real Madrid Femenino in Liga F!