Wingers who can influence the game
Olga Carmona and Athenea del Castillo started on the left and right wing respectively against Barcelona. And they were very good. In the five league games before the 1st leg tie, Toril hadn’t fielded both Olga Carmona and Athenea del Castillo as the wingers in the starting XI. But, Toril pulled out one of the cards up his sleeve and surprised Barcelona by fielding both Olga and Athenea on the wings: two pacey players who can breeze past a defender within the blink of an eye.
Olga Carmona scored the opener, making a very clever and well-timed run off the ball to meet Esther González’s tidy pass. She was used by David Aznar as a left-back. Alberto Toril continued to do the same before Real Madrid signed Sofie Svava. However, her showing against Barcelona proved that she should be trusted to be the team’s primary left winger for the next few games.
Talking about Athenea del Castillo, is there anything more left to say about this absolute gem of a player? She twists to the left, she twists to the right, with her pace the opposition cannot fight, and when she is in her groove, it is an absolute delight.
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She was one of the standout players for Las Blancas on Tuesday night. Her dribbling ability and control of the ball at higher speeds are mesmerizing. She was a thorn in the flesh of the Barca left-back Leila Ouahabi. Such was Athenea’s dominance over the left-back that she was substituted at half-time.
Real Madrid Femenino have two young talents at their disposal. And I can see them being key components in attack for the rest of the season.