Lyon look to Barcelona blueprint as rivals meet again in Oslo final | OneFootball

Lyon are looking to Barcelona’s blueprint to stay at the summit, with the rivals set to meet in Saturday’s Women’s Champions League final in Oslo.

According to Le Progres, the club want to strengthen their development of top level players along Barcelona lines. The Catalan side, widely praised for their work, beat Lyon for the first time in the 2024 final and head to Oslo as favourites.

The pairing has become a staple of the competition, in the last 10 editions at least one of Lyon or Barcelona has reached the final.

Lyon are also facing intensifying competition from English clubs with significant financial power.

Lyon defender Ingrid Engen, who arrived last summer after a spell at Barcelona, recalled that Lyon were the biggest rival and challenge when she was in Spain. She spoke of strong mutual respect, noting Lyon’s long European dominance and Barcelona’s recent rise among the continent’s elite.

In her view, they are probably Europe’s two biggest teams.

Source: Le Progres