Barcelona Women coach Lluís Cortés resigns despite winning treble
Barcelona Women’s head coach Lluís Cortés has resigned from his role after two years in charge despite winning a historic treble with the club this season.
Barça secured the Primera División, Copa de la Reina and Women’s Champions League titles in the same season for the first time. However, he announced his departure to his players before their final league match, a 9-1 victory against Eibar on Sunday.
“It has been a very beautiful period for me, in which we have experienced very emotional things with this group of people,” he said. “Getting this first treble has made us super happy, but it has also been a very tough season. We started training on the 10th of July and until today there have been 353 days of a lot of work, efforts, coexistence ... with all the conditions caused by Covid. And I think this has made it a season of a lot of wear and tear for everyone, both physically and emotionally.
“Right now I feel with very little energy to continue leading this team. The best in the world needs a trained coach to drag, spread and transmit strength to the group and I right now feel that I cannot... It has been a very nice period for me, but right now I feel very little energy to continue leading this team. It is a considered decision.”
The manager had agreed a contract extension at the start of May but there have been some reports suggesting disagreements with the players. No replacement has been announced yet.
Barcelona secured the Champions League title for the first time in the club’s history with a convincing 4-0 win over Chelsea in the final. They also won the league title by 25 points, winning 33 of 34 league matches.