Real Sociedad surprise Barça to break their winning streak
The San Sebastián side secured a 2-1 victory against FC Barcelona at Zubieta, courtesy of goals from Cecilia Marcos and Ainhoa Marín, who was named MVP of the match. Meanwhile, Patri Guijarro scored the lone goal for the *blaugranas*, who saw their winning streak this season come to an end.
18 OCT 2026
Pere Romeu's side took to the pitch in Zubieta determined to claim all three points, and within the first minute of play, Rosalía Domínguez whipped a cross into the box. The txuri-urdin defence cleared the ball, but it fell invitingly to Patri Guijarro, who unleashed a fierce strike from the edge of the area to rifle the ball straight into the back of the net, catching Alazne Estensoro by surprise. Meanwhile, Ainhoa Marín looked lively for the San Sebastián outfit. Thirteen minutes in, Esther Laborde recovered possession and played the ball to Ainhoa Marín, who played a one-two with Nerea Eizagirre. The captain then threaded a clever pass through for Cecilia Marcos to restore parity. FC Barcelona continued to press, but Alazne Estensoro stood firm at the back.
Furthermore, on the counter-attack, Ainhoa Marín came close to scoring with a long-range effort that sailed wide. Nerea Eizagirre also tried her luck with a shot that was blocked by the home defence behind for a corner. At the other end, Alazne Estensoro comfortably gathered a dangerous cross-shot from Esmee Brugts. A few minutes later, Irene Paredes came close to breaking the deadlock with an effort that struck a defender directly. Moraza also threatened for the hosts, albeit without finding the reward of a goal. Right before half-time, Nerea Eizagirre slipped a pass behind the visiting defence, and Ainhoa Marín—named Player of the Match—controlled the ball, rounded Cata Coll, and fired home to make it 2-1 heading into the break.
After the restart, FC Barcelona pushed for a comeback, but the Basque side's defence remained impenetrable. Alazne Estensoro produced a brilliant save to tip away a powerful direct free-kick from Irene Paredes. On the hour mark, Pere Romeu made a triple substitution, introducing Sydney Schertenleib, Kerolin Nicoli, and Aïcha Cámara in a bid to turn the scoreline around. Sydney Schertenleib also went close from a set-piece, but the opposition defence managed to block the effort. Ewa Pajor tried her luck from inside the box as well, though without success. Maren Lezeta and Ane Isasisasmendi came on for the hosts, while Kika Nazareth entered the fray for the Catalan side as they threw everything forward in search of an equaliser.
From a set-piece, Patri Guijarro came close to scoring with a shot from inside the area that Alazne Estensoro kept out with a superb stop. Graham Hansen was Pere Romeu's final throw of the dice in the hunt for an equaliser. The Norwegian tried to pick out a teammate with a dangerous free-kick delivery, but found no takers. The chance to seal the victory fell to Laura Camino, but her effort was blocked by the opposition rearguard. The visitors appealed for a penalty after a challenge by Esther Laborde on Kerolin, which the referee waved away. Ewa Pajor came close to scoring, but lacked clinical execution in front of goal. The final major chance of the match fell precisely to the Polish forward, whose attempted lob drifted narrowly past the post to the relief of the Basque club's defence.