UEFA Women's Champions League Performance Insight: How Barcelona won the final

UEFA's Technical Observer panel analyse how, in an absorbing final between two different styles, Barcelona changed the dynamics of the match after falling two goals down to Wolfsburg before half-time.

In a psychological rollercoaster ride, a seemingly minor tactical adjustment led to a second-half comeback that allowed the Catalan club to lift the trophy for the second time in three seasons.

Goals

0-1: Ewa Pajor (3)
Operating on the left of the Wolfsburg attack, the Polish striker dispossessed Lucy Bronze, took a couple of strides towards the centre and struck a right-footed drive that Sandra Paños could do no more than palm into the top corner of her net.

0-2: Alex Popp (37)
On one of the few occasions when Wolfsburg were able to build through the thirds, Felicitas Rauch fed the ball to Pajor whose perfectly weighted cross allows Popp to appear between the Barça defenders and head in from close range.

1-2: Patri Guijarro (48)
Aitana Bonmatí’s ball-winning set up Bronze to find Guijarro, whose pass allowed Caroline Graham Hansen to deliver a low cross from the right for the on-running Guijarro to side-foot in at the near post.

2-2: Patri Guijarro (50)
Outwitting a defender, Bonmatí lofted another cross from the right for Guijarro, making an un-tracked run from deep, to equalise with a combination of head and shoulder.

3-2: Fridolina Rolfö (70)
With Barça now able to create scenes of chaos in the Wolfsburg box, a low cross from the right was cleared by Lynn Wilms straight at Kathrin Hendrich. Mariona Caldentey latched on to the rebound which was eventually poked out to Rolfö who shot high into the net.

Player of the Match: Patri Guijarro (Barcelona)

The UEFA technical observers selected the Barça midfielder for her decisive contribution to her team's comeback victory. "She changed the game by scoring two goals in quick succession and was the catalyst for the Barcelona comeback," they commented.

However, the award was not, they emphasised, purely for her two goals but also “her attacking attitude in the second half which got her into the box to capitalise on crossing opportunities that Barcelona had not been able to capitalise on in the first half". During the final, Guijarro had 105 touches of the ball (second only to defender Mapi León) and made 82 of her team's 599 passes, with 88% of them reaching a team-mate.

Team formations

Barcelona

Barcelona coach Jonatan Giráldez had his full squad available for the final, although striker Asisat Oshoala had been troubled by hamstring problems and Caroline Graham Hansen had recently recovered from a virus, while full-backs Lucy Bronze and Fridolina Rolfö had just been passed fit after injury – but had not played a competitive game since. He kept faith in Barcelona's usual 1-4-3-3 formation.

Wolfsburg

Wolfsburg coach Tommy Stroot was, like his counterpart, able to select from a full squad and had dedicated a week's training-ground work to dealing with Barcelona's possession game and exploiting their weaknesses. With this in mind, he varied his team structure by fielding Ewa Pajor on the left of his attack, looking to exploit spaces behind Bronze. As they had done in the semi-final, Wolfsburg dropped a midfielder into defence when under pressure, forming a back line of five.

Features

Although Barcelona created chances, the dominant features of the first half were Wolfsburg's attacking efficiency (two goals from three attempts) and, above all, their well-implemented defensive strategy.

The first video illustrates their tactics when Barça were building from the back. Wolfsburg pushed five players forward to press with one cutting off a passing route to midfield while, at some distance, a back line of four with left-back Felicitas Rauch set up to prevent access to Barça’s main 1v1 threat, Caroline Graham Hansen.

Centre-back Dominique Janssen was ready to spring out of the back line to follow No9 Mariona Caldentey and, when Rauch moved out her zone to police Graham Hansen, holding midfielder Lena Oberdorf was quick to fill the gap.

When Barça recycled their attack, Oberdorf was engaged in tight marking while winger Sveindis Jónsdóttir (No23) dropped back to pre-empt a switch of play to Barça left-back Fridolina Rolfö. In the move featured in the video, Wolfsburg regained possession and immediately launched a counterattack on the left.

The technical observers highlighted Barça's adjustment to Wolfsburg's pressing strategy as one of the key elements in their comeback. This video shows how, in the first half, they pressed with two three-player triangles with (in the second clip) the three midfielders in close proximity to the Wolfsburg midfielders impeding central options. A pass to the left wing allowed them to break the press and play into the final third.

After the break, Barça pressed high with two players – usually Salma Paralluelo and Aitana Bonmatí with Caldentey dropping into midfield. The clip shows a fast run from central midfield to press the ball with centre-back Mapi León stepping out to mark Svenja Huth, left unattended by this manoeuvre. The pressing pays off when Barça are quick to surround opponents on their left and regain possession.

The technical observers also flagged-up as one of the key features Barcelona's ability to dominate the second half by retaining possession and capitalising on their technical ability despite Wolfsburg's aggressive pressing game.

In the first example, the move began with centre-back Mapi León initiating an interchange of short passes on the left with Rolfö steadily advancing her position and Caldentey dropping deep as Barça demonstrate their trademark triangular passing game. Opponents were drawn to the left with midfielder Patri Guijarro then switching play to the right for Graham Hansen to showcase her solo skills while Barça accumulated seven players in the final third, leaving 3v2 at the back.

The following sequence started in the centre-circle and culminated when Rolfö (again, one of seven in the attacking third) delivered a cross from the touchline. With sufficient numbers to earn an immediate regain from the clearance, the ball was played to Caldentey on the left where four players created an overload and finally won a corner.

The next clip illustrates a similar overload on the left where positional rotation drew right-back Lynn Wilms out of position. The pass into space behind her generated another low cross – and another corner.

The final clip begins with a Barça free-kick in the centre-circle. Six players on the left created another overload with multiple passing options. An immediate counter-press after the move had apparently broken down led to a quick regain and a pass to Graham Hansen while Barça still had five players in the box.

Despite close attention from three opponents, the right-winger ran on to her own pass and delivered the low cross to the near post which Guijarro side-footed into the net.

With barely three minutes of the second half played, it was a key moment in the final and the way Barça had drawn the Wolfsburg defence out of shape was an ominous sign of things to come.

Coaches' assessments

Jonatan Giráldez, Barcelona coach: "Maybe the half-time score was unfair because of the chances we created and the pattern of play. We made a mistake and conceded right at the start. The important thing is how you react. We did that well – but then conceded again.

"At half-time, we said that we had to improve our ball reception and we had to wake up. We had to realise there were 45 minutes left, be optimistic and believe that it wasn’t impossible."

Tommy Stroot, Wolfsburg coach: "Ultimately, it was about the quality of FC Barcelona. In the first half we showed what we can do very well. At the start of the second half, we weren't as decisive as we needed to be and were forced to play deeper. When they got back to 2-2, the game was completely open and anything could have happened.

"We were able to keep pace and threaten Barcelona for the whole 90 minutes. We did a lot right; we fought for every ball, and we were punished for small details. We delivered a good performance and maybe with a few different choices we could have decided the game in our favour."