United Women Review | Atlético Madrid away

Atlético Madrid 0 - 1 United

Dare we say it, an almost proper United European performance from Marc Skinner's side.

Author | Pete Shaw

Pre-match scenes

Fridolina Rolfo grabbed her first goal for United to put us ahead in the first half, and that strike proved to be the difference after a tense battle in the Spanish capital that saw both sides finish with 10 players.

Marc Skinner’s Reds had to dig deep after Dominique Janssen was sent off just before half-time. The defender saw red following a VAR check for a challenge on Gio Garbelini, leaving United with over 45 minutes to play a player down. 

A battling performance second-half performance with ten players

The resilience and fighting spirit so often associated with this United side was shining through on the big stage of the Champions League, and the dynamic would soon shift again after the Reds’ successfully dealt with the numerical disadvantage. 

Leah Galton, shortly after coming on, showed a burst of energy to nip the ball away from a booked Alexia Fernandez, drawing a foul that would see the Atleti player shown her second yellow card of the evening in the 74th minute.

It meant the personnel count was levelled up again at 10 v 10 going into a massive last 15 minutes. The pattern of play continued with the home side continuing to come forward in pursuit of a leveller, but the big chance at 1-0 would fall to the Reds when Malard ran from her own half, jinked inside Lauren after reaching the penalty area and curled narrowly wide.

Malard would shoot over moments later, but United wouldn’t need a second goal. Rolfo’s first-half strike was enough to record a second successive league-phase win on a proud night for Skinner’s side in Madrid.

The post-match celebrations

The result keeps our perfect record intact in the main phase of our debut European campaign, following last week’s win over Valerenga.

Milestone for Toone

In another proud night for the club, Ella Toone became the first United Women’s player to reach 200 appearances. This is a player who has become synonymous with the club now. It would be great if she were rewarded for her loyalty with a trophy this season and a long run in the Champions League.

Reds react

Millie Bond from Stretford watched on TV and said: “I'll be honest, haven't always supported Skinner fully, but got to give him credit as he's getting the best out of the team. Get in there!”

Andy added: “Great togetherness and resilience in denying Atletico any opportunity to score tonight. Credit to the players. Also, credit to Marc Skinner for the tactics he adopted in the second half; he tightened it up a little bit when needed.”

Marcus was also delighted, he said: “Even when we went down to 10 players, we still had chances ... To withstand the pressure for as long as we did, and still create chances, showed our character. Fantastic night for the club.