Weir’s Double Fires Real Madrid Past Athletic Club, Launching Champions League Hopefuls Up La Liga Table

At Lezama, under the slate-gray Basque sky, Real Madrid Women delivered a performance of clinical resolve, dispatching Athletic Club 4-1 and vaulting themselves into the thick of the Primera División Femenina title race—a statement that reverberates beyond the scoreline and into the heart of their season’s ambitions.

From the opening whistle, the stakes were clear: Real Madrid, perched in fifth with 11 points but with eyes set higher, sought both points and proof. Athletic Club, by contrast, entered desperate to halt a troubling streak—winless in five, haunted by September’s heavy Barcelona defeat and clinging to mid-table security.

Caroline Weir wasted little time imposing her authority. In the 13th minute, Madrid’s Scottish maestro showcased her predatory instincts, ghosting between defenders to nod home the opener. Even as Lezama’s faithful urged the hosts forward, it was Madrid who dictated tempo, their midfield pivoting around Weir’s composure and vision, while Athletic Club chased, too often reacting rather than initiating.

Madrid’s advantage might have been furthered before halftime, with Linda Caicedo and Athenea del Castillo combining to threaten from wide, but Athletic keeper Mariasun Quiñones kept the deficit manageable, tipping a fizzed Weir drive around the post moments before the interval.

The second half began with flickers of Athletic resistance, Jone Amezaga carving half-chances and Nerea Nevado probing from deep. For a brief spell, the Basques found rhythm, their youthful core channeling familiar spirit. It paid off in the 72nd minute, when Nerea Nevado’s incursion into the box was rewarded—the midfielder gathering a clever layoff from Amezaga and lashing a low drive past keeper Misa Rodríguez. Lezama erupted: 1-1, belief restored.

Yet Real Madrid’s response was as ruthless as it was rapid. Barely ten minutes later, Weir struck again. Picking up a loose ball twenty yards from goal, she assessed her options, feinted right, and curled a magnificent effort into the far corner. The Scottish international’s brace underscored not just her personal form—now five goals in her last three matches—but her centrality to Madrid’s campaign.

The home side, winded, could not withstand Madrid’s late surge. As the final minutes ticked away, Real’s substitutes injected fresh legs and verve, pressing for a decisive close. In stoppage time, Madrid’s persistent attacking paid off, as they capitalized on a defensive miscue to slot home their fourth—an exclamation point to a sprawling second half. The final scorer’s identity, lost in the late scramble, mattered less than the statement it delivered.

For Athletic Club, the defeat extended an unsettling narrative. Once considered dark horses for upper-table contention, they are now five matches without victory—a run including three draws and two losses, bookended by today’s collapse and the 8-1 humbling by Barcelona last month. Despite spirited moments—Amezaga’s late goal to snatch a draw at Atlético, Nevado’s recent contributions—the Basques now face a test of resilience, their trajectory flattening as the league’s elite begin to separate.

Real Madrid, meanwhile, are surging at the right moment. Their recent run—two consecutive league wins supplemented by a 6-2 Champions League rout of Roma—positions them as more than mere contenders. With Weir orchestrating from midfield, aided by the relentless running of Caicedo and the power of Athenea del Castillo, Madrid’s blend of flair and bite looks increasingly formidable.

In context, today’s win not only lifts Madrid above the early-season mediocrity that saw them drop points to Granad. Tenerife, but also signals a squad hitting their stride ahead of a packed continental calendar. Now fifth, Madrid are just one result away from the top three, their Champions League credentials burnished by both domestic and international form.

Head-to-head, Madrid’s ascendancy over Athletic Club grows steadier with each contest—last season, they swept the Basques home and away, and today’s result extends an unbeaten streak in the fixture. For Athletic, the challenge is clear: rediscover their defensive shape and attacking sharpness ahead of a daunting October schedule.

Looking ahead, both teams face pivotal weeks. Madrid, riding momentum, will seek to further solidify their credentials with winnable fixtures on the horizon and Champions League group play intensifying—a period that could define their season. Athletic Club, by contrast, must halt the slide. Their once-promising campaign now teeters, demanding urgent recalibration if they are to stave off a prolonged drift toward the lower half of the table.

At Lezama, it was Madrid who posed the questions and delivered the answers. For Athletic Club, the search for solutions—and salvation—continues.