Five talking points from the Women’s Champions League final
Alexia Putellas returns to the big time, Chelsea get a taste of what Sonia Bompastor is about and Lyon struggle for numbers
Long live the queen. It took only three minutes after coming on, deep into injury time, for Alexia Putellas to seal Barcelona’s 2-0 victory against Lyon. The 30‑year‑old has played a bit‑part role since her anterior cruciate ligament injury on the eve of the 2022 European Championship but her influence still runs through the club with an unmatched intensity. Putellas’s new contract is well deserved; the roar of the crowd when she stood on the sidelines ready to come on rivalled those for the goals. Barcelona with Putellas back at her best should strike fear through every European club with Champions League ambitions.
