Red-and-white streamers exploded into the air as Arsenal lifted its second Women’s Champions League trophy after stunning defending champion Barcelona 1-0 in the final on Saturday.
Tough defense and a goal by Stina Blackstenius in the 75th minute from a pass by fellow second-half substitute Beth Mead powered Arsenal to glory at Estádio José Alvalade.
Arsenal’s title came 18 years after it became the first — and still the only — English club to win the top club title in women’s soccer.
Arsenal’s players embraced on the final whistle and ran to celebrate in front of the corner of the stands where their supporters reveled in the shock result.
“We had to be basically perfect to beat Barcelona,” Arsenal captain Kim Little said. “Our players who came on today had an incredible impact.”
Little and Leah Williamson raised the trophy and streamers and glittering confetti shot over the podium. Meanwhile, Arsenal forward Mariona Caldentey, who played for Barcelona until this season, consoled Barcelona star Aitana Bonmatí before she stepped up to collect her fourth Champions League winner’s medal.
Barcelona was the heavy favorite. It was aiming for a fourth title in five years and to become the only team other than Lyon to win three consecutive titles. The team led by two-time Ballon d’Or winners Bonmatí and Alexia Putellas won nine straight in the competition and blew out Wolfsburg and English champion Chelsea in the knockout rounds.
But Arsenal locked down in defense — except for early in the second half — and created the best chances. Only two superb saves by Barcelona goalkeeper Cata Coll to deny Frida Maanum and Blackstenius kept it scoreless until Blackstenius finally beat her.
Defense wins championships
The victory marks an incredible finish to a rocky season for Arsenal, which included coach Jonas Eidevall resigning and being replaced by assistant Renée Seglers.
Since taking over, Seglers steered the team through a spectacular European campaign. Arsenal built its confidence from come-from-behind wins over Real Madrid and eight-time champion Lyon in the knockout rounds before laying low the almighty Barcelona.
Seglers delivered a masterful coaching performance in the final, getting her substitutions right and devising a way to stop the highest scoring team in the tournament.
“What we did so well was using all possible tools to speed the game up, to disrupt it, but to stay true to who we are. This was key to why we won today,” Seglers said. “Barcelona are so good, but we tried to exploit weaknesses where we could. We said beforehand that the midfield of Barcelona was the engine. So we wanted to stop them.”
Arsenal defender Katie McCabe said it was all about the work rate the entire side put in. That started up front, where England striker Alessia Russo was a rock for Arsenal, using her size to win balls and keep the attack going.
“We respect them but we can’t give them too much respect either,” McCabe told The Associated Press. “We needed to put pressure on them and we know we are a really good pressing team and our frontline and the midfield really worked their socks off today.”
Barcelona falls short on biggest stage
The loss was a huge disappointment for the more than 15,000 Barcelona fans who filled the stadium that is home to Sporting Lisbon. Blue-and-burgundy shirts and flags outnumbered the red-and-white section, but their calls of “Yes we can!” in the final minutes weren’t enough to inspire a comeback by the Catalan club.
The closest Barcelona came to a goal was a shot by Claudia Pina that hit the crossbar just after halftime when the Spanish team had its best period. Otherwise, the game was to Arsenal’s liking.
