The next move on the chess board could not have been clearer for Barcelona and their coach, Pere Romeu: a new queen has broken into the Blaugrana midfield. Clara Serrajordi has made substantial moves already: she made her first-team debut at the age of 17, started ahead of Aitana Bonmatí in the 2026 Champions League final and is filling the void left by the departed Alexia Putellas this season. Serrajordi is a keen chess player and uses it to disconnect from football and there are similarities to how she plays.
A pure representation of a La Masia-educated midfielder, she is always one move ahead, conscious of the space around her and fully aware of the importance of each teammate. Serrajordi was scouted at the age of 11 in 2018 when playing for CE Llerona who were in the same league as Barcelona’s alevín team. I would just repeat to myself: ‘I’m going to be with the best’.” At 18 years old it can be difficult to imagine what lies ahead and even though Barcelona give academy products more chances than almost anywhere else in elite football, the statistics are not great.
There is no official percentage but an investigation done by Mundo Deportivo in 2022 concluded that only 2-5% of the men’s La Masia players make it to the first team. The figure may well be the same for the women’s side. When you first arrive at the club, you don’t think you’re going to make it to the first team.” In the 2025-26 season, Serrajordi started 19 of 26 league matches she played in, totalling a goal and three assists along the way.
She sustained an arm fracture at the beginning of this season and was out for a month, but has already totalled 311 minutes on the pitch. Barcelona won 4-0 and Serrajordi won her first Champions League. You feel it will not be the last.
I found out in the pre-match talk and when [Romeu] told me, I only thought ‘OK, we need to go out with everything and fight for the most important title of the season.’ For me, it was a dream and to have achieved that in my first year; it was special.” There are clear similarities between the Llinars del Vallès native and Putellas, physically and footballistically. Serrajordi was taken under the Barcelona captain’s wing and seems like the most natural replacement for the midfield legend, who left her childhood club to join London City Lionesses last summer. But in terms of style of play, we all play very similar.
We all have the Barça style and she definitely has it. So, there are some similarities, yes, but I can only hope to one day become like her, but I still have a lot of things to improve.” The balance between youth and experience at Barcelona is a key part of the success of the club. With departures and injuries, the blaugrana club has been forced to rely on their academy prospects to fill in the big gaps on the pitch and in the dressing room.
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