UWCL final: Barcelona ‘don’t start 1-0 up’ despite past glory – Putellas
Barcelona midfielder Alexia Putellas warned past Champions League success guarantees nothing as the Catalan side attempt to win the competition for a third consecutive time against Arsenal in Lisbon on Saturday.
Barça are competing in their sixth final in the last seven years and, in addition to a three-peat, are aiming to lift the trophy for the fourth time in the club’s history.
Arsenal, on the other hand, are appearing in their first final since 2007 having come from behind to beat Real Madrid and Lyon in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively.
“It’s a dilemma all sports people have,” Putellas said in a news conference when asked how Barça maintain their motivation to keep producing the goods in the Champions League.
“You have to forget what the team has achieved and what you have done as a player to keep future objectives on track. It can be difficult to find that balance.
“We look very little at what we have done. We may have won three Champions Leagues, but you don’t start tomorrow 1-0 up.
“You forget what’s gone before as the seasons rattle by so quickly. You always want to reach the next objective, which is tomorrow’s final.
“We will prepare in the best way and give everything to win the trophy. And once the game’s done, we have another final [in the Copa de la Reina] ahead of us. That’s the way it is in this profession, which we love.”
The Liga F champions go into the final in good form. Losses to Manchester City, Levante and Madrid earlier in the campaign had led to some criticism, but they have now won 10 games in a row in all competitions, scoring 48 goals and conceding just four.
Two-time Ballon d’Or winner Putellas says that while anything can happen in a final, Barça know they have a good chance of winning at the Estádio José Alvalade if they are at their best.
“Finals are unpredictable,” she added. “Things always happen that you can’t control, but we are clear that everything that depends on us, we know what we can do.
“Arsenal are a great team. They have top players and a great coach; there’s a reason they’re in the final. They scored four against Lyon and they beat Madrid.
“It’s football, a lot can happen from there, the ball can go in or not, but we have confidence in the plan we have. We know that being at our best, we will have a lot of chances and that can lead to goals that can win you the game and the trophy.”
Saturday’s showdown with Arsenal offers Barça the chance to reflect on how far they have come since making their debut in the Champions League in 2012.
Their first ever European match, coincidentally, was against the Gunners, who beat them 7-0 on aggregate, but a lot has changed since then, with the Blaugrana preparing for their 100th appearance in the competition this weekend.
“In that first game it was unthinkable to imagine what would come afterwards,” Putellas said.
“The change since then has been unbelievable, above all since we have been professionals. I feel privileged to have been part of the whole journey.”
Despite all their success in the ensuing years, Barça are still short of some of the records held by eight-time winners Lyon, who they beat for the first-ever time in last year’s final.
“I don’t want to compare with Lyon,” Putellas’ teammate Aitana Bonmatí said. “They had their own path. Now we have ours. Different teams in different years.
“We used to talk really good about them. For us, they were the mirror in the past. Now maybe we are the mirror for a lot of teams. We are proud of our path. We will try to make more history tomorrow.”
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