"I am at peace because I've chosen the best moment to leave something that any of us would never leave." That's Alexia Putellas — two-time Ballon d'Or winner, four-time Champions League champion, scorer of more Barcelona goals than anyone except Lionel Messi — sitting in a New York Times office explaining why she walked away from the only club she'd known as a professional adult.
After 14 seasons at Barcelona, 10 league titles, and a trophy haul that totals four Champions Leagues, 10 Copa de la Reina crowns, four Spanish Super Cups, a World Cup and two Nations Leagues with Spain, Putellas has signed for London City Lionesses. Not a Champions League contender. Not a superclub with infrastructure built over decades. A two-year-old WSL outfit playing out of a 6,000-capacity ground in Bromley.
That's the point.
Why London, Why Now
The WSL is the attraction, not the destination. Putellas was direct about what pushed her: the Spanish league had become too comfortable. Barcelona had pulled so far ahead of domestic rivals that the competitive edge — the thing that drives her — was dulling. "I want to try to give my 100 per cent because the other teams and mine are pushing me to give everything," she said. In England, any team can beat anyone on a given weekend. That's not a marketing slogan. It's genuinely what the WSL looks like right now, and it changes how you have to prepare, think, and play.
There were offers elsewhere, including Boston Legacy and other NWSL clubs, but proximity to family mattered. London is a short flight from Spain. "It's not about money," she said plainly, "because if it was, I wouldn't be here."
Owner Michele Kang — the billionaire investor who also controls OL Lyonnais and the Washington Spirit — was another factor. Kang recently launched a $55 million initiative with U.S. Soccer focused on women's health research, including ACL injury prevention. That hits close to home for Putellas, who tore her own ACL in 2022 at the peak of her powers, just before the European Championship. She spent four years working through it daily, even on rest days. She came back to score 20 goals in 43 games last season and finished second all-time in Barcelona's scoring charts. The research Kang is funding is exactly what she believes the women's game needs.
What This Means for London City's Season
The Lionesses finished their debut WSL season as a mid-table club finding their footing. Signing the player who defined the last decade of women's club football in Europe is not a gradual rebuild move — it's a statement that Kang intends to accelerate. WSL title odds for London City will shift accordingly, though Putellas herself was measured about timelines. "You have a lot of teams in the WSL that have been doing this for a long time, so it would be a challenge," she acknowledged. Realistic, but not defeatist.
On the pitch, she'll play wherever the team needs her — nine, winger, organiser — though she's clearest about her best position: central attacking midfielder. At 32, with an eye on playing until 37 or 38, she's not winding down. She's recalibrating.
"I challenge myself to have the level that I have now as much time as possible," she said. "I've won everything, but something I have never won is the WSL."
That's still true. And it's the only thing on her list she hasn't crossed off yet.
