Barcelona Women opened their Primera División campaign with a comprehensive 5:0 victory over Granadilla-Tenerife at home on Saturday afternoon. The result puts the Catalans top of the table with three points after one game, while the visitors sit bottom of the standings with none. It was a performance that reflected everything about where these two teams stand in Spanish women's football.
C. Graham gave Barcelona the lead in the 27th minute, and to be fair, the visitors had no real answer. C. Pina doubled the advantage before half-time with a goal in the 39th minute, and by then the match was effectively over. E. Pajor added a third in the 48th minute, and R. van Asten made it four in the 52nd before the break. That's when Barcelona stopped thinking about winning and started thinking about how many goals they could score.
I. Paredes scored the fifth in the 63rd minute, and here's the thing — Granadilla-Tenerife had already broken. R. van Asten was substituted in the 55th minute, which seems odd for a player who had just scored, but Barcelona were managing their resources. The visitors received four yellow cards, while Barcelona picked up three, but the cards tell you nothing about a match like this.
The statistics speak for themselves. Barcelona enjoyed 78 per cent possession and registered 13 shots on target with 10 off target. Granadilla-Tenerife managed zero shots on target and their goalkeeper made eight saves, mostly from distance. Barcelona completed 707 passes compared to 200 for the visitors, and their 162 attacks dwarfed Tenerife's 28. They won 12 corners to none.
Barcelona's recent form makes this result less surprising. They beat Levante 5:0, Madrid 4:0, and Lyon 4:0 in their last five matches before this one. Granadilla-Tenerife had won 3:0 against Sevilla in their most recent outing, but beating a mid-table side is a different proposition from facing the champions. The gap between these teams was visible from the first whistle and never closed.