Midfielder Alexia Putellas, 32, leaves FC Barcelona after fourteen seasons. She departs as the second player with the most appearances (507) and the club's all-time top scorer (232 goals). Her trophy cabinet includes 38 titles: four Champions Leagues, ten Leagues, and ten Copas de la Reina. She was Barça's first female Ballon d'Or winner (2021 and 2022) and has won one World Cup and two Nations Leagues with Spain. Her farewell will be at the Camp Nou against Real Sociedad.
The tactical system that reinvents itself without its beacon ⚽
Putellas' departure forces a rethink of the midfield. Her ability to break lines with through passes and her goal-scoring instinct from the second line were constant resources. Without her, the team loses an interior profile that combined arrival and vision. The coaching staff will need to redistribute those 232 goals among other players, adjusting the press in zone three and the occupation of spaces in the opponent's area. The defensive transition also suffers, as Putellas was key in the first line of pressure after losing the ball. The bench will have to bet on more direct profiles or rotate the system.
Goodbye to the boss: who will keep order in the dressing room now 🏆
She who silenced critics with goals and raised eyebrows with looks is leaving. The dressing room loses the figure who settled debates with a simple frown. Training sessions will no longer have that moment when someone arrived late and received the 38-title speech as punishment. Now the youngsters will have to manage without the reference who knew when to tighten the screws and when to crack a joke. That said, at least the competition in Liga F will breathe a sigh of relief at not having to hear her name in every lineup.