Two juggernauts of women’s football will go head to head on Saturday as Barcelona take on Lyon in the 2024 edition of the UEFA Women’s Champions League final in Bilbao.
Lyon are eight-time winners of the competition and the most decorated side in its history, while Barcelona have recently risen to the very top of the women’s game and have enjoyed plenty of success in recent years. It has become one of the biggest rivalries going and this will be the third meeting between the two in a European final in the last six years.
Both teams boast world class talent and both have already swept up silverware this season by securing their respective league titles.
90min has taken a look at where Saturday’s showdown could be won and lost…
Aitana Bonmati, Patri Guijarro, Lindsey Horan… that’s just some of the talent these teams possess between them in the middle of the park. In a game that can often be decided by the finest of margins, control in the midfield will be absolutely key for whoever comes out on top.
Whether it’s dictating play in possession, or remaining compact enough to make sure the opposition has no way through – both sets of midfielders will need to be at 100 percent.
Aston Villa and France star Kenza Dali highlighted the importance of Lyon midfield duo Damaris Egurrola and Horan for the reigning French champions.
“The balance for Lyon, when Damaris is playing, she makes a massive difference,” Dali said.
“I’m a massive fan of Horan. She is the greatest of all time for me in the USA. Everyone is talking about [Megan] Rapinoe and [Alex] Morgan, but we’re going to remember what Lindsey has done. She can fit in any team.”
Barcelona themselves aren’t short of world class talent and, as a midfielder herself, Dali can fully appreciate the significance of the 2023 Ballon d’Or winner, Aitana Bonmati. Decisive for both club and country, there’s few players in the world currently operating at the Spain international’s level.
“She’s a joy to watch,” Dali continued. “An unbelievable player. Everything I like in a player, she has it.”
In a fixture that has the possibility of going to extra-time or even penalties, who finishes the game well is equally, if not more important than who starts it on top. How both managers use their bench to potentially turn the game on its head will be significant.
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