A 10-minute storm brought by Catarina Macario was enough to see Chelsea through. They had trailed and they had been taken to the line but ultimately two goals from the American and the misfortune of Real Madrid’s captain, Olga Carmona, maintained their perfect record.
Introduced at half-time on a cold night in front of 2,057, Macario changed the game and smashed in a pair of penalties that put the WSL leaders into the quarter-finals as winners of Group B. “That was mentally very important for us,” Sonia Bompastor said.
Six meetings later and still this is a fixture the Spanish club cannot win but they may never have been closer, Madrid coach Alberto Toril insisting: “We lost, that is the reality, but I am happy: in terms of play we were better than them. The numbers don’t lie.”
The numbers showed that Madrid had 58% of the possession and 15 shots, their finishing not as good as their football, but they also said that the visitors had scored a goal more and in the final analysis that, Bompastor insisted, was all that mattered.
The Chelsea coach also said that her players were “exhausted”, which explained their struggles: four games in December were too much. And if they might have paid for that, trailing to an early strike from the superb Caroline Weir, there was satisfaction in how they found a way back.
Catarina Macario fires home Chelsea’s winner in the second half. Photograph: Manu Fernández/AP
The goal with which Madrid took the lead came as a statement, foreshadowing what would come in an opening period where Chelsea got control. A pass from the goalkeeper Misa Rodríguez was the starting point for a sequence of 12 more that ended with the ball in the net at the other end, Chelsea drawn in, turned, and exposed. Eventually the ball was worked to Weir whose shot lopped in off Hannah Hampton’s hand.
The game was only six minutes in but that was already Weir’s second effort and she would cause Chelsea problems often, a gorgeous bit of skill bamboozling Agnes Beever-Jones and then Millie Bright to provide an opportunity from which Carmona shot wide. Yet if Madrid were worthy of their lead at the break, they had it taken from them immediately after it.
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Quick GuideWCL roundup: Celtic sunk by Twente, Lyon edge WolfsburgShow
Celtic’s debut campaign in the Women’s Champions League group stage concluded with a sixth straight loss as they were beaten 3-0 at Twente. Both sides were already eliminated before kick-off but the hosts started stronger and took an early lead through Kayleigh van Dooren’s 20th-minute finish.
Celtic then scored two own goals before the break, with 18-year-old goalkeeper Lisa Rodgers and defender Natalie Ross both deflecting the ball into the net from Twente corners. Elena Sadiku’s Ghirls finish bottom of Group B, while the Dutch champions take third place, six points behind runners-up Real Madrid.
In Group A, Daniëlle van de Donk’s late goal earned Lyon a 1-0 home win over Wolfsburg. With 10 minutes to go, Kadidiatou Diani surged to the byline and cut back for Van de Donk, who clinically back-flicked the ball home. The eight-times WCL winners had already sealed top spot, but secured a 100% record with victory.
Roma, already out based on their head-to-head record with Wolfsburg, earned a 3-0 home win over Galatasaray. Striker Alice Corelli opened the scoring with a fine half-volleyed finish after just nine minutes, with 17-year-old Rosanna Ventriglia and defender Elena Linari adding late goals. PA Media/Guardian sport
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Macario had replaced Mayra Ramírez at half-time and inside 30 seconds had the ball in the net which, although ruled out for offside, was an indication that this was different now. Within two minutes, she was in again: this time, the shot faded wide. And then a minute after that a neat drag back just inside the area drew a foul from Carmona. From the spot, she hit the roof of the net. Soon, she was doing it again: same space, same pace. This time, it was a Carmona handball that gave her the opportunity. Ten minutes into the second half, Chelsea led.
Madrid would not just let this go. Hampton pushed away from Filippa Angeldahl who sent another effort over. Melanie Leupolz’s swinging free-kick hit the bar. And an Angeldahl dash created the first of two great chances missed by Naomie Feller, the substitute who shot wide then and scuffed over when supplied by Weir’s clever delivery. The Scot had two free-kicks: one bent past the post, the other curled over the bar. Still they came, all the way to the last when Feller headed over on 92 minutes. In the end though, 10 of them had been enough.