Arsenal Women 2-1 Real Madrid Femenino
Champions League report 
by Layth Yousif 
at Meadow Park

TWO Alessia Russo second half goals helped Arsenal stage a thrilling comeback against Real Madrid to warm the spirits on a bitterly cold evening at Meadow Park on Wednesday.

Russo’s brace made it four Champions League goals this term for the popular Gunners striker, who finished third in the Ballon d’Or Feminin. Russo also netted a double against Real Madrid during last season’s memorable 3-0 quarter final victory that overturned a 2-0 deficit on the way to lifting the trophy.

It could be that once again a stirring European run may mask domestic shortcomings, for, while the win was welcome, not least as it boosted the holders hopes of qualifying automatically from the league stage, the fact was Renee Slegers’s side were winless in their previous three matches, losing 3-2 to Bayern Munich last week and drawing with Tottenham and Chelsea in the league, after making the club’s worst start to a WSL season since 2014.

For a club of Arsenal’s stature, with the quality of the squad, and its proven winners, that simply isn’t good enough.

Speaking after the match, Slegers said: “We went into the game under pressure. We didn’t speak about it, but everyone knew we have to win, if you look at the Champions League table,” adding: “The way the players respond under pressure is such a high level.”

In front of a Meadow Park crowd of more than 3,000, Russo’s post-interval double sealed a spirited reversal of fortune, albeit against a side currently fourth in the Spanish league.

The hard-fought victory was a first win in four games in all competitions, after former Gunners midfielder Caroline Weir had given the visitors the lead shortly before the break with an excellent volley.

However, Arsenal equalised in the 53rd minute when Russo’s header from a Chloe Kelly cross made it 1-1, evoking memories of a similar goal against Spain in the final of Euro 2025. England of course went on to win the game, and so did Arsenal on a freezing Wednesday night in the north London/Hertfordshire border, when Russo grabbed her second 14 minutes later.

The winner coming after the lively 26-year-old striker shook off Filippa Angeldahl to head in substitute Beth Mead’s cross, prompting joy among home fans who had relentlessly supported their team throughout a testing clash on a freezing evening.

“It was a really important win,” Russo said after the match. “Tough conditions but our fans were amazing. They were with us through it all, and it was really important that we won tonight. It was nice to score the goals as well.

“I think we know the attitude of the team. We’d seen it a lot last year, in tough moments we always rise.

“You can never count us out and I think we felt that tonight.

“We were really dominant in our second half performance, now we want to build on that going forward.”