Back and better than ever? Ballon d’Or front-runner Alexia Putellas primed to purge ACL demons with Spain three years on from Euros heartbreak

After her devastating injury on the eve of Euro 2022, the Barcelona superstar comes into this summer as perhaps the best player in the world right now

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Tickets

Women's Euro Tickets

• Secure your Women's Euro 2025 tickets for this summer's international tournament
• Location: Switzerland
• Stadiums: Various, including St. Jakob Park, Stadion Wankdorf, Stade de Genève and more
• Date: July 2 – 27
• Final: July 27, St. Jakob Park

From

€149

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Accommodation

Where to stay

• Book hotels, apartments and accommodation across Switzerland for the Women's Euros
• Search for places to stay near the stadiums, across Zurich, Basel, Bern, Geneva and more
• Look for accommodation based on your dates, number of bedrooms, and budget on Booking.com

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Shop your kit

• New kits from adidas, Nike and Puma have been released for the Women's Euro tournament
• Grab your favourite team's kit to support throughout the games
• Search for your team, including Italy, England, Germany and more
• Available in sizes XS – XXL

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€50

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Tickets

Women's Euro Tickets

• Secure your Women's Euro 2025 tickets for this summer's international tournament
• Location: Switzerland
• Stadiums: Various, including St. Jakob Park, Stadion Wankdorf, Stade de Genève and more
• Date: July 2 – 27
• Final: July 27, St. Jakob Park

From

€149

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Accommodation

Where to stay

• Book hotels, apartments and accommodation across Switzerland for the Women's Euros
• Search for places to stay near the stadiums, across Zurich, Basel, Bern, Geneva and more
• Look for accommodation based on your dates, number of bedrooms, and budget on Booking.com

From

€49

Book nowRead More

Kits

Shop your kit

• New kits from adidas, Nike and Puma have been released for the Women's Euro tournament
• Grab your favourite team's kit to support throughout the games
• Search for your team, including Italy, England, Germany and more
• Available in sizes XS – XXL

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It was the day before the 2022 European Championship was set to begin when the news broke that Alexia Putellas, the very best player of the previous season, had suffered a devastating ACL injury. The Barcelona star went into the summer in world-beating form, having inspired the Catalans to a treble-winning season and a Champions League final. It was a season that would lead to Putellas claiming her second Ballon d'Or, her second FIFA Best Player award and the UEFA Player of the Season accolade – but she'd have likely swapped it all for a chance to play for Spain at the Euros.

La Roja could've used her magic, too, in a tournament that ended with them losing in the quarter-finals to England. They pushed the Lionesses all the way but just couldn't quite get over the line, with Ella Toone equalising in the 84th minute before Georgia Stanway secured victory early in extra-time. It was the first of several big moments Putellas would miss over the course of her recovery period – and there were many that she still could not take centre stage for upon her return, either. When Spain got their revenge over England in the World Cup final a year later, the two-time Ballon d'Or winner was only introduced as a substitute in second-half stoppage time.

But, as Euro 2025 prepares to begin, all of that is in the past. Putellas is not only fully fit again, she is back at the absolute top of her game. As was the case three years ago, she enters this tournament off the back of a season in which she was one of the best players in the world, if not the very best player in the world – and she'll be desperate to be able to help Spain succeed with a continuation of that form.

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  'From a stratospheric level to not being able to walk'

  Nothing sums up just how high a level Putellas was playing at, and how much a blow that ACL injury was, than the words the player herself has used to describe it: "You go from playing at a stratospheric level to not being able to walk," she told last week. “You get to the gym, which is at least your habitat. Then the pitch, where you think you’re progressing but frustration comes because your last memory playing was like that and now you can’t play a pass, can’t turn, can’t control. There are times you wonder [if you ever will].

  “They warn you that the day you get the medical all-clear, play again, it’s still not done. You need time, adaptation, competition. Don’t think you’ll be the same – that’s just not real. You still have three, six months. You have to try to give yourself that margin, control your emotions. And right in the middle of that period is a World Cup.”

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  Road back to the top

  After starting just three of Spain's seven games on their way to becoming world champions, there would be further setbacks for Putellas, too. In the 2023-24 season, she underwent another knee surgery and was limited by injuries as Barca won a first-ever quadruple on the women's side. She averaged less than an hour per league appearance, playing just 19 of the team's 30 games, and could only be a sub in the Champions League final win over Lyon.

  But the flashes were there. Her goal in that European showpiece, a fantastic finish to put the cherry on the cake as Barca avenged defeat to the French giants in 2022, felt like a message to the continent that Putellas was still here, she could still make a difference and she still had so much to give.

  "You can see what she means to this team, to this city and this club," Keira Walsh, part of that triumph, said of Putellas' goal. "Obviously to go 2-0 up was massive, but it made it more special that it was Alexia."

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  'Capable of anything' again

  Any doubts Putellas had about returning to her Ballon d'Or-worthy level, though, have been dispelled over the course of the past year. In Liga F, she racked up 16 goals and 11 assists in 24 games, with only Ewa Pajor, Barca's 25-goal striker, directly involved in more goals. In the Champions League, she scored three goals and provided four assists, particularly stepping up in the latter stages to propel the Catalans to another final. That's on top of goals and assists in the Copa de la Reina and the Supercopa de Espana, two more competitions that Barca triumphed in. In fact, across Europe's top five leagues, no one created more chances in 2024-25.

  In short, it's hard to pick out many, if any, who come into Euro 2025 in better form, more capable of propelling their team to glory. "It wasn’t my knee that hurt, it was my soul," she told , reflecting on the moment she ruptured her ACL. "You know that feeling, that sense of security when it’s like you’re capable of anything? At that moment, I felt it. And now, I’ve got that feeling once again."

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  Unfinished business

  It's not just at the Euros that Putellas has herself some unfinished business, either, but also just on the big stage with Spain in general. When she went to that World Cup in 2023, she had only recently come back from her ACL injury, so her game time was managed somewhat, and when she was part of the squad at last year's Olympics Games, there was a lot of controversy about the way Montse Tome used the two-time Ballon d'Or winner in what was ultimately a disappointing summer for the world champions.

  When Spain were 2-0 down in the quarter-finals against Colombia, Putellas, arguably the team's best performer at the tournament, was withdrawn. Fortunately, La Roja were able to fight back, albeit only winning narrowly on penalties, and thus questions around that decision were brushed aside.

  But when Tome then benched Putellas for the semi-final against Brazil, it was a huge talking point, one described as 'inexplicable' in the Spanish press. While the main issue in La Roja's rather shocking defeat to the South American champions was the defence, it was stunning that Tome waited until her side were 3-0 down to introduce Putellas.

  Less surprising was the impact the midfielder made. She was easily her team's best player from that moment on, hitting the crossbar, forcing a superb save out of the goalkeeper moments later, providing the corner delivery that led to Spain’s first goal and heading the ball onto Salma Paralluelo to assist the second. Unfortunately, though, it was all in vain, as La Roja suffered a 4-2 loss that ended their hopes of Olympic gold.