Real Madrid arrived at Estadio Alfredo Di Stéfano with a narrow advantage from the first leg in Paris, but the second leg never felt like a formality. Paris FC came to Madrid needing a response, and the opening exchanges carried the edge of a tie still within reach.
One of the night’s defining images came down the right flank, where Athenea del Castillo repeatedly drove into contact and demanded the ball under pressure from Fiona Liaigre. Each challenge tightened the atmosphere, turning every 50–50 into a small referendum on who would control the rhythm of the match.
The tie tilted almost immediately when Paris FC were reduced to ten players in the fifth minute, an early dismissal that forced the visitors to reshuffle their shape and their ambition. Instead of a measured chase, Paris were pushed into survival mode far sooner than planned.
Even down a player, Paris FC still threatened to complicate the script. They nearly found a way back with a low effort that required a sharp save from Misa Rodríguez, a moment that briefly reminded the home crowd the aggregate margin was still delicate.
Real Madrid’s pressure built through sustained possession and repeated deliveries into the box, but the breakthrough refused to arrive before halftime. Caroline Weir had the chance to settle nerves from the spot, only for Mylène Chavas to stand tall and keep Paris within touching distance.
That penalty save kept the scoreline tight, yet it also underlined the direction of the tie—Madrid probing, Paris absorbing, and the contest turning into a test of concentration as much as quality. Athenea continued to look for the decisive touch, drifting inside to combine and then sprinting wide again to stretch the back line.
The deadlock finally broke in the 54th minute when Naomie Feller finished from close range, capitalizing on a dangerous ball into the area. The goal lifted Madrid’s tempo and forced Paris to chase a game that was slipping away in both score and energy.
Paris’ resistance cracked again soon after as a cross caused chaos in the box and ended with an own goal from Melween N’Dongala. At 2–0 on the night, the tie felt settled—Madrid were composed, Paris were running out of numbers and time.
From there, the home side managed the closing stages with control rather than caution, keeping the ball, slowing transitions, and squeezing the life out of Paris’ counterattacks. Athenea’s duel work and defensive tracking helped turn the final minutes into a grind that suited the team with the lead.
The result confirmed Real Madrid’s progress to the quarterfinals with a 5–2 aggregate victory and set up a heavyweight showdown against Barcelona. For Paris FC, the story of the tie will be the moments that swung it—an early dismissal, a saved penalty that briefly offered hope, and a second-half stretch where Madrid’s ruthlessness finally matched their dominance.
