Chelsea manager Emma Hayes has told fans her team gave the Women’s Champions League final “everything” in their 4-0 defeat to Barcelona.
The Blues, who have won the Conti Cup and Women’s Super League this season, crumbled in the first half and couldn’t get back into the match.
Melanie Leupolz scored an own goal at 33 seconds, the fastest Women’s Champions League goal this season, and the scores just kept coming for Barca.
Alexia Putellas, Aitana Bonmati and Caroline Graham Hansen slotted a goal each before half-time to seal the win for the Spanish giants.
The victory came just one week after Barca sealed the Primera Division title with eight games left to play.
(Image: PA)
And Hayes conceded that Barcelona were the better team on the night, saying her side were naive at times.
Hayes told BT Sport: “It’s been a wonderful season for us, today was difficult because the game was over before it began and that’s what is so difficult to reflect on.
“To concede so early, we had two good chances and then they got the second through the penalty. Ann [Katrin Berger] hasn’t had a save to make but we’ve lost 4-0, but the damage was done, I’m proud of the second half performance, the players gave it everything.
“Congratulations to Barcelona, they’re worthy winners, deserving of the title and it’s something we will learn from because this is the next step, we showed some naivety at times.”
And on fans, she said: “I love you. We miss you. We gave it everything. We are not quite European Champions yet, but guess what?
“We are the second best team in Europe. I’ll take that as a step in the right direction.”
Sunday’s final was the first Chelsea had been a part of in their club history, having only reached the semi-finals in the 17/18 and 18/19 seasons.
The hurt shown by the manager was also echoed by the players as defender Millie Bright described the goals they conceded as “sloppy”.
She told BT Sport: “It’s disappointing, we didn’t have the start to the game we wanted, but in these game against these opponents you can’t concede sloppy goals.
“They had four chances in the first half and put four goals in the back of the net. It’s a massive learning curve but we’re proud of the journey. We had chances, but couldn’t put the ball away.
“Congratulations to Barca, they’re an incredible team and deserve it. We’ll be back better and back stronger for the next time.”
