An era ends: Alexia Putellas leaves Barça after fourteen seasons

BarcelonaAn era has ended. Alexia Putellas leaves Barça after fourteen seasons. The captain announced it this Tuesday, three days after winning the fourth Champions League in Oslo and completing a perfect season with the poker: Champions League, League, Cup, and Super Cup. Through a video on her Instagram account, she explained that she is closing "a perfect story." Alexia will say goodbye this Wednesday at the Johan Cruyff, in the Barça-Real Sociedad match, the last home game for the blaugranes in the League. Before that, at 11:00 AM, there will be an institutional event with the entire first-team squad and the Board of Directors at Camp Nou.

"Let's see where to start..." This is how the farewell video begins, made in Catalan and visibly emotional, the blaugrana captain. "Culers, I remember the first time I heard your shouts. I was six years old and it was the first time I went to the Camp Nou with my father. At that moment I only saw men playing in the stadium and it would never have occurred to me that, right there, one day there would be more than 90,000 culers shouting my name. [...] I can still feel the excitement of the first time I played with the Barça shirt in the lower categories. I see, as if it were now, the proud face of my father saying that he would not leave this world until he saw his daughter defend these colors with the first team".

"At eighteen years old and just one month after my worst family moment, life put Barça back in front of me to be a player, and this time, for the first team. In my worst moment, I will always say that Barça saved me. For all this, I will always be indebted to these colors. We have taken the women's team further than we could ever imagine", describes the footballer from Mollet del Vallès in a video of more than five minutes that combines images with the moments she has lived on the field while Rosalía's song Magnolias plays in the background.

"The future of the team is yours and it will be up to you to make history at the best team in the world. I have always said that this jersey could not be defended by halves and I admit that I have emptied myself. I have been and will always be one more 'culer' like you. Therefore, I don't want it to be a sad moment. This is just a stage that is ending, but luckily I was born and will die a 'culer'. So, we will see each other again. Long live Barça, always, forever", concludes the captain, who admits that she wanted her last moment with Barça to be the best possible.

An eternal legacy

Alexia, who has become an icon –football-wise, but also off the pitch–, is bringing an end to a relationship full of success for both Barça and on a more personal level. At 32 years old, the player has become one of the great role models for the growth of women's football, especially in Europe. She arrived at Barça in the summer of 2012 as a young prospect in a team that was not yet professional. In these fourteen years, both the club and the player herself have experienced constant evolution, reaching the European summit on four occasions. Alexia was there for all four Champions Leagues won by the Catalan team.

The Catalan leaves after 507 matches with the blaugrana shirt –which could be 509 if she plays against Real Sociedad and Madrid CFF– and 232 goals, figures that make her the second top scorer in the club, only behind Leo Messi (672) and tied with César Rodríguez. The captain will also be on the verge of being the player with the most matches played with the Barça women's team, specifically seven games away from equalling Melanie Serrano (517).

The perfect ending

After months of uncertainty regarding her future, Alexia Putellas has decided not to fulfill the optional year she had in her contract. She renewed in 2024 for two seasons, plus one optional. Last summer, PSG tempted her, but she decided to stay at Barça. Now, she leaves through the front door, after winning her fourth Champions League and becoming the player with the most titles as a blaugrana: 38, three more than Leo Messi (35).

Alexia has won four Champions Leagues, ten Leagues, ten Cups, six Super Cups, and eight Catalan Cups. In addition to collective trophies, the Catalan also became the first player from Spain to win a Ballon d'Or in 2021 (she has two). Alexia's successes have helped consolidate Barça at the European summit, but fourteen seasons later their paths will separate.

The player from Mollet del Vallès will begin a new adventure with Michele Kang's London City –owner of Olympique de Lyon and other clubs– and the United States as possible destinations. Before, however, the Johan Cruyff stadium will be able to say goodbye to the blaugrana this Wednesday afternoon.

Day of farewells

Alexia Putellas's departure will not be the only farewell that the Barça fans will experience this Wednesday. Mapi León, Ona Batlle, and Marta Torrejón also plan to announce their exit to say goodbye to the culers in the last home game of the season. Meanwhile, Pere Romeu, Graham Hansen, and Salma Paralluelo are still awaiting resolutions on their futures. Everything points to the coach and the Norwegian forward continuing at Barça, while the Aragonese winger still has to make a decision.