<strong>Five things we learned from Real Madrid Femenino 2-0 Arsenal Women </strong><strong></strong> | OneFootball

Real Madrid Femenino dealt a huge blow to Arsenal Women’s Champions League dreams with a 2-0 quarter-final first leg win on an underwhelming and frustrating night for Renée Slegers’ side in the Spanish capital.

A big second leg needed for Arsenal

Arsenal Women remain the only English side to win a European trophy, with their triumph in 2007 being the last time they reached a European final. Chelsea’s lead in the WSL is exponentially growing by the week, leaving the UWCL Arsenal’s only feasible chance of silverware this season. While many would have touted Renée Slegers’ side as favourites coming into the encounter here in the Spanish capital, the North London side were largely outplayed in as they conceded two goals to leave themselves with a mountain to climb at The Emirates in next Wednesday’s return leg. The North London side must improve against an invigorated Madrid side who will travel to London bursting at the seams with confidence. There is no doubt the conditions at The Emirates, in terms of both support and pitch quality, will be more favourable than they were at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stéfano, but Arsenal have no doubt made life very difficult for themselves following a below par performance.

A quiet day at the office for Russo

Alessia Russo is closing in on her best-ever season following her transfer from Manchester United last July. The England international has scored 15 goals, five of which have come in the UWCL. Russo has quickly become one of the first names on the team sheet for Renée Slegers and would have surely been a cause for concern for Alberto Toril ahead of the North London side’s visit to Madrid. Despite enjoying such a stellar season, Russo was feeding on scraps in the opening period, and whilst she became much more involved in the game in the second half, never really looked as though she would find the back of the net. The 26-year-old’s quality and work-rate are undeniable, and Slegers will be hoping for a big performance from her in-form Lionesses in the return-leg.

Dangerous duo strike again

Real Madrid’s Signe Bruun led the way in goal involvements in this year’s UWCL, coming into the match with five goals and three assists – the most of any Madrid player ever in the competition. Her partner in crime, Linda Caicedo, has registered four assists in her six European appearances so far this season. It became a tale of roles reversed for Madrid’s dynamic duo for the opening goal of the game, as Bruun’s neat through ball was emphatically smashed into the bottom corner by Caiecedo to give the Spanish side a one-goal advantage. A moment to forget for Leah Williamson, who fell victim to the wet conditions, with the ball slipping from under her foot and into Caicedo’s path leaving the Lionesses’ captain only able to look on from afar as she saw her side go behind.

No way through

Real Madrid have long since played second fiddle to FC Barcelona Femení in Spain, and Renée Slegers’ Arsenal side will have been considered firm favourites when predicting the outcome of this tie. While all is still to play for in the second-leg, Arsenal have been scoring goals for fun this season and would have expected to leave Madrid with at least a goal to their name. But instead there proved to be no way through the resolute Las Blancas defence for the visitors, whose attacking threat was largely nullified by Alberto Toril’s back line. A crunching tackle on Stina Blackstenius in the first few minutes largely set the tone for the game, with every defensive action resulting in an equal if not greater reaction from the Madridistas in the stands. It will undoubtedly be a greater test in the return-leg next week with the North London outfit spurred on by the Arsenal faithful, but there is no doubt Toril will be extremely pleased with his side’s performance on both the offensive and defensive ends of the game.

Pitch not so perfect

The state of the pitch on Saturday’s League Cup Final became a significant talking point when discussing Chelsea’s 2-1 win over Manchester City, and Arsenal’s visit to the Estadio Alfredo Di Stéfano proved to be an all too similar story. The uncharacteristically wet conditions in the Spanish capital coupled with the dire state of the playing field saw both sides struggle to settle into their preferred free-flowing football which has allowed them to progress through the competition with relative ease thus far.The return leg is set to be played at The Emirates next Wednesday, and it will certainly be a shock to the system for both sides playing on the perfectly preserved pitch of Arsenal’s home following the conditions in the Spanish capital.