Athletic Club - FC Barcelona

Athletic Club Women were beaten 0-4 in their rescheduled Matchday 17 Primera Iberdrola fixture against FC Barcelona.

The Lionesses put up a good fight, growing as the match progressed. But FC Barcelona were as solid as they have been throughout the entire season and beat Iraia Iturregi’s side. The crowd, once again present in the stands at Lezama, made sure Athletic were well supported in their final home match of the campaign.

Athletic made a good start to the game. Mariana Cerro had the first chance, but her shot went wide. Amaia Peña was then called into action, making a great save from their top scorer, Jenni Hermoso. FC Barcelona’s first goal came in the 13th minute, when Patri Guijarro finished expertly from the corner.

Oshoala could have increased the lead, but the second goal came from a set piece in the 33rd minute wth Berta Bou got on the end of a rebound another from another great Amaia save. Before the break, Patri crashed a ball against the crossbar. At half-time the score was 0-2 in favour of Lluis Cortés’ side, who were clearly the better team.

In the second half, the game continued with the Catalan team on top. However, youngster Naia Landaluze did make her debut for the first team, replacing Lucía García in the 55th minute.

Naia took her place on the right side of Athletic’s attack. In the 61st minute, the Blaugrana extended their lead with a goal from Oshoala, who struck a low shot across goal and past the Athletic keeper just before Mariona sent another strike against the woodwork.

In the final stretch of the game, the Lionesses kept searching for a goal, but fatigue took its toll. Putellas made it 4-0 in the 74th minute to ensure FC Barcelona had the game fully under control.

Landaluze came close to making a goalscoring debut, but Gemma Font came up well to cut out Arana’s intended pass.

Next Sunday, the Lionesses will play Deportivo Abanca, thus bringing a tough season to a close.