Was Athenea del Castillo’s equaliser for Spain the best goal of the Women’s Euros so far?

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“Have you seen your goal yet?,” Athenea del Castillo was asked in the mixed zone after Spain’s victory against Italy on Friday.

“No, I have my phone here, but I haven’t seen it,” replied the striker, while grabbing a journalist’s mobile. “Let’s see.”

She pressed play.

A few seconds passed, and the player raised her eyebrows in surprise. She nodded approvingly, and a shy smile she couldn’t contain began to spread across her face.

“Ah, it is better now than when I saw it live!,” she said, “I didn’t think it was that well taken!”.

Her goal, which had levelled the scores four minutes after Elisabetta Oliviero had put Italy ahead, was crucial as the Spanish won their final European Championship Group B match 3-1 to go through to the quarter-finals in top spot.

🅰️lexia art 🎨#WEUROassists || @amazon pic.twitter.com/QcXOgBd9ms

— UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 (@WEURO2025) July 11, 2025

At the pre-match press conference, Del Castillo revealed she has been reading a lot lately when she wants to disconnect from football. When asked what her current book was, the 24-year-old Real Madrid forward grinned and said to Patricia Perez, the world champions’ press officer, “They’re going to catch me out.” She then admitted that she couldn’t remember the title.

Turns out the book in question is Trae, Que Ya Lo Hago Yo, Idiota (Bring it here, I’ll do it, idiot) by Julio Liarte. And that is precisely what Del Castillo must have thought when she picked up the ball with Spain behind in the 14th minute of yesterday’s match.

Del Castillo strikes against Italy (Miguel Medina/AFP via Getty Images)

Based on her post-match reaction, she might not have realised quite yet. But she had just scored the tournament’s best goal so far.

This is even more impressive considering Spain have found the net 14 times in their three games and Norway, the second-highest scoring team at this point, are also averaging almost three goals per match, having hit eight in their three outings.

Del Castillo’s Spain team-mate Claudia Pina could challenge her for goal of the tournament.

In the 6-2 win over Belgium in the second group game on Monday, Pina scored the fifth goal with a work of art. Aitana Bonmati played with a subtle backheel to Alexia Putellas, who passed to their Barcelona colleague unmarked near the edge of the area.

Pina appeared when nobody was expecting her, settled the ball, centred her position, looked around, saw she was alone, and shot with her right foot. With surgical precision, the ball flew into the top corner. She did it effortlessly, as if scoring these goals was just natural and the easiest thing in the world.

Match reports indicate that the ball entered the Belgium goal at 98.6 km per hour.

The debate will rage on over which goal was the best, but Del Castillo is in with a very strong shout. Like Pina’s, it was assisted by Putellas. Surely because of the beauty of the assist, last night’s goal wins the battle on aesthetics alone.

Italy were putting intense pressure on Spain, although there were signs that they would not be able to maintain that intensity for 90 minutes. Putellas had Arianna Carusso on her tail. Carusso intercepted a ball that was heading for the Catalan. Bonmati picked up the rebound and passed it back to Putellas (No 11).

Putellas is aware that this match requires patience, as Spain wait for the Italian players to tire physically, so she utilises one of her greatest strengths, her vision, to look up and see that one of her midfield partners, Patri Guijarro, is close by. She passes her the ball quickly and accurately, and Guijarro (No 12) spreads it out wide to Del Castillo.

Del Castillo looks at her passing options inside the box. She sees Salma Paralluelo. Bonmati (No 6) is a bit further over, while Putellas is behind them both. She realises that she is very isolated and that the opposition box is full of Italian defenders, well set as a back five.

But in these early stages of the match, Del Castillo can also tell that the Italy full-backs seem afraid of one-on-ones. They let her receive the ball. Deciding to take a chance, she starts dribbling diagonally. She gets past her opponents, weaving between two defenders, touching the ball from one foot to the other.

Del Castillo shuffles her way past two Italy players and then slides a pass inside to Putellas, knowing that the ball will come back to her soon.

What she can’t imagine is that Putellas will produce an outrageous flick into the path of her onrushing striker. When you see it in slow motion, you wonder how Putellas was able to do it in a fraction of a second at such high speed.

The assist is the icing on the cake. It is Putellas’ third assist at this tournament, continuing the two-time Ballon d’Or winner’s excellent form.

Del Castillo hits it first time, with the inside of her right foot.

She is under a huge amount of pressure, surrounded by five defenders, but doesn’t care. Italy remain petrified by Putellas’ top-class touch. The blue-shirted defenders stare at her, as if she were in the centre circle and not in front of the box. They don’t dare go for her. Only Barbara Bonansea makes a move for the ball.

Del Castillo feels confident. It’s going to be her day.

Her shot is perfect, though, curling past defender Cecilia Salvai and beyond the outstretched arm of goalkeeper Laura Giuliani. It flies into the top corner.

Del Castillo had been training last season at Madrid to shoot with her left foot. She naturally plays on the left side of the pitch, but in recent seasons has operated on the right for her club. Although she is right-footed, she has been training to be versatile with both feet.

“I saw Ale (Putellas) and I knew she was going to give it back to me, but I didn’t know how,” Del Castillo said to reporters after the game. “I didn’t know she was going to give it back to me so well. I had a moment of doubt, whether to shoot with my right or left foot, and in the end I decided to play it safe with my right foot (and go for) the far post.”

The ball hits the back of the net, and Del Castillo turns to celebrate her first goal at a European Championship with what looks like rage.

She points at Putellas to thank her for her masterful assist, and as she does so, the small braids she wears tied back in a ponytail whip through the night air like lashes. Behind her, Bonmati and Mariona Caldentey stand with arms outstretched, as if to say, ‘What has she just done?’.

The Spanish fans celebrated wildly — not just because of the beauty of the strike, but because of the almost immediate response from their side to Italy’s opener.

It was the start of the comeback.

Guijarro and Esther Gonzalez also scored as Spain ran out 3-1 winners, earning maximum points in the first stage of a Euros or World Cup for the first time. They go through as group winners to face host nation Switzerland, again in Bern’s Wankdorf Stadium, next Friday.

Del Castillo vindicated herself with her performance last night, having not had many minutes during Spain’s first two games at this tournament. Caldentey — generally playing out of position on the right wing — Pina and Gonzalez have been in great form and have therefore been chosen to form the starting forward line, with Del Castillo playing 61 minutes off the bench before last night.

She started for the first time at a European Championship because Spain had already qualified, and coach Montse Tome decided to rest players, making six changes to the line-up that began the Belgium game.

Despite her great form — she has scored seven goals for Madrid in all competitions in 39 matches last season — it will be difficult for her to get a permanent place in Spain’s starting XI. She should still get opportunities, especially with Spain advancing steadily through the competition.

(Top photo: Eddie Keogh/Getty Images)

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