Real Madrid draws with Chelsea thanks to a controversial penalty
Double by Olga Carmona (2-2) to save a point at the Di Stéfano
MADRID, 15 Nov. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Real Madrid drew (2-2) this Wednesday at home against Chelsea FC, during matchday 1 of the Champions League, in a match that went from more to less for the Madrid team and where a controversial penalty, scored by Olga Carmona in the final stretch saved a golden point within Group D.
On the pitch of the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium, the white team made its debut with great enthusiasm in the top European competition. And they did it well, dominating in the early stages, warning with a couple of timid approaches that served as a prelude to the 1-0 lead in the 10th minute.
After Athenea del Castillo could not find space to attack from the right end, she moved the ball back to Claudia Zornoza and she passed it to Olga Carmona three quarters of the way down the field. The Madrid ‘7’, without opposition, approached the front and hit one of her own left-footed shots.
The ball tripped over Millie Bright and changed its trajectory enough that the visiting goalkeeper was unable to clear it. However, Chelsea knew how to take that blow and equalized in the 21st minute; Sam Kerr let in Jessie Fleming’s low cross from the left, but there was no finisher behind him and Carmona cleared.
A little later, Misa Rodríguez made a save with her left foot on a shot by Kerr herself inside the area. The siege continued and it was up to defender Ivana Andrés to providentially clear another low and ‘bitten’ cross, placed by Niamh Charles from the left in the 39th minute.
The prize for ‘blue’ insistence came two minutes later, following a combination between Johanna Rytting Kaneryd and Ashley Lawrence, who cut back and centered near Misa; Charles appeared there to score 1-1, which could well have been the prologue to another goal. A dangerous volley by Sjoeke Nüsken with his left foot, just before the break, put the merengue goalkeeper in trouble.
Misa was once again the protagonist at the beginning of the second half, deflecting Kerr’s point-blank shot into a corner while she was getting away from Ivana. Although Alberto Toril’s changes slowed Chelsea’s momentum, the 1-2 score was slowly becoming clear and crystallized in the 74th minute, with a header into the net by the omnipresent Kerr after a cross from Charles.
Without time to savor the comeback, the most controversial play of the entire match arrived. Athenea tamed the ball and sprinted forward, while Fleming tried to trip her; The Danish referee Frida Klarlund interpreted a foul and also ‘put’ an action that was apparently out of bounds into the area, but with no option to correct it due to the absence of VAR.
Carmona did not waste it to score, with an unappealable left foot shot at mid-height, the final 2-2. Despite everything, Chelsea’s final efforts came close to a victorious goal that never came. There was another save from Misa, on a strong shot from Kaneryd from the crown, and even Lauren James sent a left-footed shot from the front line to the crossbar.
With the extension time already up, to make matters worse, Charles’s goal was disallowed due to an offside signal to his teammate Kerr, who in the eyes of the referee team had interfered in the match. With tremendous anger the ‘blue’ club left the Estadio Di Stéfano, having added a single point for the group classification.
DATASHEET.
–RESULT: REAL MADRID, 2 – CHELSEA, 2 (1-1, at half-time).
–ALIGNMENTS.
REAL MADRID: Mass; Oihane, Ivana, Kathellen, Carmona; Toletti, Abelleira (Olofsson, 89 mins), Zornoza (Oroz, 60 mins); Athenia of the Castle, Caicedo (Raso, min.89) and Bruun (Feller, min.71).
CHELSEA: Berger; Lawrence, Bright, Carter, Charles; Cuthbert, Nusken; Kaneryd, Kirby (James, min.64), Fleming; y Kerr.
–GOALS.
1-0, min.10: Carmona.
1-1, min.41: Charles.
1-2, min.74: Kerr.
2-2, min. 78: Carmona (p).
–REFEREE: Frida Klarlund (DIN). She gave a yellow card to Toletti (min.45) and Kathellen (min.90) at Real Madrid.
–STADIUM: Alfredo Di Stéfano.