HomeLiga FBarcelona win Copa...

Barcelona win Copa de la Reina after exciting final against Levante

Barcelona win Copa de la Reina against Levante UD and add their 3rd title of the season after Liga Iberdrola and Women’s Champions League.

Blaugrana completed their treble with their 8th Copa de la Reina title. In the final, they scored 3 goals in the first half an hour, which was enough to prevent Levante’s comeback.

Barcelona knocked out Madrid CFF in the semi-final with a routine 4-0 win, while Levante secured the spot in the big final with an injury time goal against Atlético Madrid. The Catalans were clear favourites in the game, and it didn’t take long to take the lead. Already in the 5th minute, Patri Guijarro’s header ended behind María Valenzuela’s back after Barça’s corner kick. Levante was pressured early in their build-up phase which resulted in a lot of lost possessions. In the 20th minute, Blaugrana doubled their lead. Lieke Martens assisted again, this time for Alexia Putellas header which surprised Valenzuela. Just 9 minutes later, we saw an identical mistake from Valenzuela, who left her area, and this time Marta Torrejon converted Martens’ assist into a goal. After the 3rd goal, Barcelona pace slowed down a bit and Levante managed to balance the game. They came very close to getting a goal back in the extra time of the first half but Alba Redondo shot wide from a very promising position. A dominating performance from Barcelona in a first half an hour and most of the work done already in the first half.

After the break, Barcelona continued with their domination and create more half-chances but couldn’t convert. On the other side, Levante managed to get a goal back. Alba Redondon received a nice pass from Sandie Toletti, beat Cata Coll who replaced Sandra Panos between the post, and scored into an empty net. The goal encouraged the 6th time cup winners to open up. The flow of the game changed and suddenly Levante was dominating Lluis Cortes’ team. In the 67th minute, Andrea Pereira blocked Redondo’s shot. But Estefania Banini converted the deflection and Levante was just one goal down. Second Levante’s goal was a wake-up call for Barcelona who pressured higher again. Alexia Putellas won the ball in the offensive half and crashed Levante’s hopes of a comeback with a 4th goal in the 73rd minute. After the 4th goal Barcelona took back the control of the game and could almost scored a 5th but Ana-Maria Crnogorčević hit the post in the 88th minute.

At the end, Barcelona routinely brought home the win, despite some bumps on the way. What a season for Blaugrana, completing their treble with 8th Copa de la Reina title, two weeks after becoming Women’s Champions League winner.

Copa de la Reina final

FC Barcelona – Levante UD 4-2 (3-0)
Scorers: 5′ Patri Guijarro (B), 20′ Alexia Putellas (B), 29′ Marta Torrejon (B), 59′ Alba Redondo (L), 67′ Estefania Banini (L), 73′ Alexia Putellas (B)
Yellow cards: 61′ Kheira Hamraoui (B), 90+1′ Melanie Serrano (B)

Continue reading

Manolo Cano stays on Atletico Madrid bench

Manolo Cano stays on Atletico Madrid bench also in the next season after contract renewal. The 47-year-old took charge last December after Oscar Fernandez dismissal. Debutant in Liga F led Rojablancas to the 4th place finish in the Spanish top...

Katarzyna Kiedrzynek returns to Paris

Katarzyna Kiedrzynek returns to Paris Saint-Germain from Wolfsburg. She signed a two-year deal until June 2025. The 32-year-old played for Motor Lublin and Gornik Lezna in Poland before joining PSG for her first spell in 2013. After seven years in...

Maria Pérez pens a new deal with Barcelona

Maria Pérez pens a new deal with Barcelona and will stay with Blaugrana for at least two more years, until June 2025. The 21-year-old has been with the club her whole senior career and made her way up through the...