Barcelona went into their match against Benfica without the injured Aitana Bonmati, Patri Guijarro, Ona Batlle, Salma Paralluelo, Kika Nazareth and, at the last minute, Irene Paredes, who was suffering from a fever. Even so, they beat Benfica and practically sealed their place in the next round.

A final bout of Champions League action for the calendar year will be staged across Europe on Wednesday evening. There are still two more league phase matches to come at the beginning of the new year, but the chance to end 2025 on a high in Europe’s premier competition arrives for 18 sides this Wednesday.