FC Barcelona is where it wants to be: at the absolute top of Europe. Understandable for women. The team of Jonatan Giráldez won on Saturday afternoon in Eindhoven for the second time in club history Women’s Champions League. In a spectacular final in front of 33,147 spectators, Barça settled 3-2 with the German VfL Wolfsburg, which has three Dutch internationals under contract with Dominique Janssen, Lynn Wilms and Jill Roord.
FC Barcelona’s new seizure of power took much more effort than expected. After the first half it seemed that it would be a German party with an orange tint. But after ninety minutes it was the Catalans who made singing and jumping noise in the PSV stadium when captain Alexia Putellas held up the cup. The blaugrana may rightfully call themselves the queens of Europe.
Sporty revenge
FC Barcelona Femini won the Champions League for the first time in 2021, but failed to defend the title last season. Twelve months ago, the final battle was lost 3-1 to Lyon. The final in Eindhoven was therefore partly dominated by sporting revenge for FC Barcelona. Because the Catalans do not want to be at the top by accident, but to be structurally the best in Europe. To this end, the club has made significant investments over the past ten years.
Alexia Putellas sat on the bench at FC Barcelona in the atmospheric Philips Stadium. The best player in the world was not yet fit enough after a long-term injury to her cruciate ligament. FC Barcelona started the game with an arrogant attitude. The game was less than three minutes old when England’s Lucy Bronze made a blatant error. She defended in front of her own goal – a mortal sin in football – and let Ewa Pajor take the ball off her foot. The Polish number 9 of VfL Wolfsburg shot the ball hard with the right behind Barcelona keeper Sandra Paños.
FC Barcelona clearly suffered a mental blow by the early, unexpected goal from the physically stronger VfL Wolfsburg. The team half-heartedly went looking for the equalizer, but few or no chances were created. It was VfL Wolfsburg that struck again from scratch in the 37th minute with a striking header from Alexandra Popp. A green-white mass jumped up and down. The Catalan fans covered their eyes. The thoughts went back to the lost final battle of a year ago.
FC Barcelona turned everything upside down in a blistering second half – in which Putellas was allowed to come in for a while. In 25 minutes they managed to turn the 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 lead. A scrutinized slider and a striking header from Patricia Guijarro and an effective shot from Fridolina Rolfö were enough for an impressive remontada. The Dutch internationals of VfL Wolfsburg will go on holiday with a hangover feeling before they have to report to national coach Andries Jonker for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
FC Barcelona wants to establish itself permanently at the top. The road to ‘the best team in Europe’ has taken about 35 years. And that didn’t go without a hitch. In 1988 a women’s team was founded in Barcelona with the name ‘Club Femení Barcelona’. They wore the same colors and used the same facilities as FC Barcelona’s men, but only officially became part of the club in 2001.
Almost lifted
The FC Barcelona women have long played a role in the margins in the sporting field. When they were relegated from the top division of the then Spanish women’s football in 2007, it was almost decided to abolish the women’s division. Women’s football was professionalized instead. Successfully. FC Barcelona managed to attract foreign stars such as Lieke Martens, Kheira Hamraoui, Caroline Hansen and Rolfö and, with Putellas as the big star, seriously opened the hunt for the European top. Two years ago they won the Champions League for the first time. And with this second win it is confirmed that they are now almost unbeatable in Europe.