Lyon focused on fourth Women’s Champions League title in a row
The Netherlands midfielder Lieke Martens said she is “happy” in Barcelona as speculation about the possibility of swapping the Catalan club for her Champions League final opponents, Lyon, mounts.
“I saw it also today in the news,” Martens said on Friday, speaking before Barcelona’s first Champions League final. “I don’t know. I have one more year in Barcelona, I am really happy here, I’m just focused on the game tomorrow and that’s it.”
The Barcelona head coach, Lluís Cortés, was similarly vague on the future of his star – who according to L’Équipe has a £3m buyout clause. “Tomorrow Lieke is going to be with us,” he said. “I don’t know what will happen next but tomorrow Lieke will be with us and that is good for us.”
Cortés was clear that, win or lose, reaching the final shows Barcelona are treading the right path. “Of course the fact that we are playing the final is an achievement in itself but it’s not the final stage and, if we win tomorrow, that won’t be either,” he said.
“The club has been investing in women’s football, we want to put more investment into the female team and for us to reach the Champions League final is an achievement. It shows we’re working well. It’s a step forward. We’re at a high level in terms of European football but we have to keep working.”
The midfielder Vicky Losada believes Lyon are far from unbeatable. “Over the years they were one of the first teams to invest in women’s football,” she said.
“They have lots of qualities but they are not invincible. They went through hardship playing against Chelsea and last year when we played against them it was not a clear win for them; it was just one goal in each match. That’s what we have to keep in mind. They are a good team but anything can happen and we can win the match.
“We know how Lyon play, we know how their team work and we believe in our capacities. We’ve worked really hard and we’ve gained respect in Europe.”
Martens added: “The key is going to be which team has more possession and the transition so I’m really excited to see what happens. It’s going to be really interesting.”
For Lyon’s Dzsenifer Marozsán it will be an emotional experience to play a final in Budapest, having been born in the Hungarian capital.
“There is a lot of emotion in me. It’s a big big game for me,” said the Germany captain. “I’m proud to be born in Budapest. It’s perfect for me that the final is here. I can play the first time at home in front of my family. It’s my dream, it was my dream, but now it’s true. I’m really excited.”
Lyon are five-time winners of this competition and, should they beat a Barcelona side playing in their first final on Saturday, they will pick up their fourth consecutive title. Marozsán said maintaining their run and writing history is what keeps them motivated. “It’s really important for us as a team and for the club as well that we can write history. It’s a big motivation for us.”
The Lyon captain, Wendie Renard, echoed her sentiments. “We want to keep on writing history for our club for all the investments that are made into our team,” she said. “It’s very important to retain our title as we’ve done in the past.”
Complacency is not an option: “I think we’re the team everybody wants to beat and that’s what I say every time,” said Renard. “We win trophies because we do everything possible to win those competitions.
“But it’s a final tomorrow, it’s 50-50, we’re defending our title but once you start a match there’s no favourite.”
Lyon were handed a tough route to the final. They played last year’s final opponents Wolfsburg in the quarter-finals before meeting Chelsea in the next round. They did not look their freeflowing best but Renard said those challenges had shown the depth of their quality. “We never feel like we are superior. We always respect our opponents and we try to use our qualities and our strengths as much as we can.
“We’ve got great players but that’s not enough. It’s a state of mind. It’s a will to progress. The players, the club, always wants to get more trophies and be at the highest level possible and once you’ve started you want more.
“We’ve started winning, we want more. That’s what gets us going, winning titles. Against Chelsea we showed that we were able to defend, to be strong, to play together. It’s not something we’ve shown consistently but we’ve shown we can overcome such obstacles. I think we’re able to adapt to any situation in a match. You can’t be on top form for 90 minutes in every match. You have stronger and weaker periods. We know how to work together to get better.”
Marozsán agrees: “We always find a solution. It doesn’t matter if it’s against Chelsea or Wolfsburg, they were tough games. We didn’t have a great game but we won in the end and that’s the most important thing. We stay always together as a team and this is the key to winning games.”
Barcelona have not conceded in the Champions League since September but Lyon’s head coach, Reynald Pedros, said: “It is up to us to find a way. We will be extremely motivated.”