The 2023 edition of the UEFA Women’s Champions League final is finally here. Barcelona will face off against Wolfsburg in Eindhoven on June 3. Both teams, having given their all to get to the last phase of the competition, will now have a chance to get their hands on the much-coveted European trophy.
Unlike the previous stages, where it was a two-legged affair, the final will be played as a single match. Both teams will only have ninety minutes of regulation time. However, provided the game ends in a draw at the end of regulation time, another thirty minutes of extra time would be given to break the tie and find a winner. After which, the game would then proceed to penalties if neither side could find a winning goal to end the contest.
Both Barcelona and Wolfsburg have had an impressive season so far, with breathtaking performances both in the UEFA Women’s Champions League and their respective domestic leagues.
Barcelona have been crowned champions of the Spanish League for the 8th time in their history. While Wolfsburg ended their season in the Frauen-Bundesliga in second place behind winners, Bayern Munich
The road to Eindhoven
The final of the 2023 edition of the UEFA Women’s Champions League will be played at the Philips Stadion in Eindhoven, Netherlands, on June 3 at 14:00 UTC. Barcelona and Wolfsburg have taken the hard road to get here, overcoming all challenges to get glory. Given their history in the competition, both teams are well respected, having shown their ambition and drive over the years.
Come June 3, both teams would have made a combined ten appearances in the UWCL final over the years, winning three titles among them. However, this would be the first time they would be facing one another in the final of the UEFA Women’s Champions League, and it promises to be an exciting match.
Barcelona Femeni
Barcelona came out top of their group after playing against Benfica, Bayern Munich, and Rosengard over two legs each. With a statement win on Matchday 1 against Benfica where the Blaugrana convincingly won 9-0, they went on to win all their group stage matches, except for the 3-0 loss against Bayern Munich in the second leg played in Germany.
Scoring 29 goals and conceding 6, in the group stage, Barcelona came out top of the group after edging out Bayern Munich on goal difference despite both teams having the same points.
Pitted against newcomers, AS Roma in the quarter-final, the Spanish champions marched on to win 1-0 and 5-1 respectively over two legs with the second leg taking place in front of their home crowd at the Spotify Camp Nou. A win that secured their place in the semifinals where they went up against Chelsea in the semi-finals.
The semifinal turned out to be an interesting matchup. However, the Spanish side came out on top. Barcelona got their ticket for the final after denying Chelsea a chance to get on the bus to Eindhoven. In a tantalizing matchup that saw two European giants play against each other, Barcelona got the better of Chelsea again. After defeating the English side with a score line of 4-0 in the 2021 edition, Chelsea was made to relive the nightmare from Gutenberg when they were dumped out of the competition by their Spanish counterparts.
After a 1-0 victory away and a 1-1 draw at the Spotify Camp Nou, the Blaugrana progressed to the finals on aggregate. With a record of being the best-attacking side in the competition, Barcelona would be looking to bag their second UEFA Women’s Champions League trophy after reaching the final three times in a row. Denied a chance to get their hands on the much-coveted title by Olympique Lyonnais in the previous edition, Barca has found their way to the finals again, thus making it their third consecutive appearance in a UWCL final match in a row and their fourth appearance in five years.
Barcelona, who have been crowned champions of Liga F, the Spanish league, for the 8th time in their history, have the chance to win one more title this season. After being disqualified in the Spanish Cup, Copa de la Reina, the Catalan giants were denied a chance to go for the treble. Thus, making the UEFA Women’s Champions League title the only piece of silverware they can win to bag a double and make up for their Spanish Cup loss. The Catalans were knocked out of the Copa de la Reina, due to fielding an ineligible player. Hence, thwarting their chances of winning the treble. However, with the league season already completed and the title in the bag, the Spanish giants now have all their focus on the final in Eindhoven.
Another massive boost will be the return of club captain Alexia Putellas, who was out for a period of about 10 months after suffering an ACL injury that kept her on the sidelines for most of the season. The two-time Ballon d’Or and FIFA Best Player of the Year returned from injury in time to make the squad list against Chelsea in the second leg of the semi-finals. Although she didn’t get any minutes in that game, the Spanish midfielder has constantly featured in their last five Liga F games.
Like any player just returning from a long-term injury, in her first three games back, the skipper looked a bit rusty, as she was obviously lacking match fitness and required more game time to shake off the rustiness and be fully ready. However, on the last day of the league season, Barcelona found themselves two goals behind their opponents, and the captain came off the bench to score their only goal of the game. Although the plan wasn’t enough to change the fortunes of the team in that game, it did send a message that the best is getting back into her groove. Alexia Putellas looks ready for Eindhoven.
Likewise, after being sidelined for a couple of weeks, full-backs Lucy Bronze and Fridolina Rolfo are also back training with the team and have received the medical green light to play in Eindhoven.
Rewatch the semi-finals
You can re-watch the semi-final match between Barcelona Femeni and Chelsea Women on DAZN.
Chelsea vs Barcelona (first leg): https://www.youtube.com/live/StRJuKYKZFo?feature=share
Barcelona vs Chelsea (second leg): https://www.youtube.com/live/suiRCBzlS1k?feature=share
Wolfsburg
The Germans topped their group after playing against Roma, St. Polten, and Slavia Praha over two legs each. They won four and drew two of their group-stage matches, scoring a total of 19 goals and conceding 5. With 14 points, one point more than Roma who came in second in the group, Wolfsburg progressed to the quarter-finals.
In the quarter-final, Wolfsburg faced Paris Saint Germain over two legs. A 1-0 win in the first leg and a 1-1 draw at home in the second leg secured their place in the semifinals where they went up against Arsenal.
Like Barcelona, Wolfsburg had to plow through an English side, Arsenal, to make their way to Eindhoven. It was a thrilling two-legged affair where both sides forced each other into extra time to decide the winner of the tie.
After playing a 2-2 draw in the first leg, the German side traveled to London, where they once again played for 90 minutes, ending with the same scoreline. The game extended into extra time, where Wolfsburg finally got the winning goal and beat Arsenal to book their ticket to Eindhoven. With an aggregate scoreline of 5-4, the two-time champions make their way to Eindhoven, where they will be making their sixth appearance in the UWCL final.
Having the leading goal scorer of the competition in their ranks is a massive boost for Wolfsburg. With eight goals to her name, Ewa Pajor leads the UWCL goalscoring chart for the season, with Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati being the closest threat to her with five goals.
Rewatch the semi-finals
You can re-watch the semi-final match between VFL Wolfsburg and Arsenal Women on DAZN.
Wolfsburg vs Arsenal (first leg): https://www.youtube.com/live/IuPzyJRV1cg?feature=share
Arsenal vs Wolfsburg (second leg): https://www.youtube.com/live/eDnrAGSjP3k?feature=share
Matchday Squad
The squad list for the Barca Femeni players that will be available for the clash against Sevilla, has been released by the club. The list can be found on the club’s official Twitter account and other official media pages.
Totes cap a Eindhoven 🇳🇱💪💙❤️ pic.twitter.com/Wa39uk5Yt4
— FC Barcelona Femení (@FCBfemeni) June 1, 2023
Injuries
Although Barcelona has listed all of her first-team players in the match-day squad, there is still doubt over the fitness of Asisat Oshoala (hamstring).
Possible Lineup
Starting lineup
Panos, Mapi, Paredes, Bronze, Rolfo, Walsh, Aitana, Patri, Paralluelo, Graham, Geyse
Substitutes
Cata, Gemma, Codina, Jana, Marta, Rabano, Engen, Alexia, Pina, Mariona, Crnogorcevic, Bruna, Vicky Lopez, Emma, Oshoala
What to expect
It would be a clash of the titans in Eindhoven, as the game promises to be full of drama and vigor. with both sides possessing enough qualities to be crowned champions.
Kick-off time
Time: 14:00 UTC. 15:00 WAT, 10:00 ET
Date: 3 June, 2023
Venue: Philips Stadion, Eindhoven
Where to watch the game
You can watch the UWCL final match between Barcelona Femeni and VFL Wolfsburg live on YouTube at DAZN Women’s Football.
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