BARCELONA, SPAIN -- Alexia Putellas says she has still not decided her next club after announcing she will leave Barcelona this summer after 14 trophy-filled years with the European champions.
London City Lionesses have been strongly linked with the two-time Ballon d'Or winner, while sources have told ESPN there is also interest from the NWSL, Mexico and Paris Saint-Germain.
Putellas, 32, said she knows what comes next will never match what she has experienced at Barça.
"I have given everything in these 14 years," the midfielder said at a farewell event held at Spotify Camp Nou on Wednesday.
"I have demanded the maximum from myself every day. I didn't want to continue with the level of demand I have placed on myself -- it's not normal over so many years.
"This will always be the best part of my career: the teammates, the staff, all the people that live for this club, the stadium, the fans...
"My career will continue, but the best part of it has now passed. Wherever I go, which I still don't know, I have a summer ahead of me to make decisions, I won't have what I have here."
Putellas, who will make her final Barça appearance against Real Sociedad on Wednesday, has been at the heart of the club's transformation since joining in 2012.
Prior to her arrival, they had never reached a Champions League final. They have now been in seven of the last eight finals, winning four of them, including the latest last weekend by beating OL Lyonnes 4-0 in Oslo.
In the meantime, Barça have turned professional, sold out Camp Nou on multiple occasions, breaking the attendance record in women's football, and moved into the Johan Cruyff Stadium having previously played at the training ground.
Speaking at her Putellas' goodbye, teammate Irene Paredes said she was the "motor" of Barça's evolution on and off the pitch, while president elect Joan Laporta said she is "more than a player."
On an emotional occasion, in which she broke into tears several times, Putellas, who has won 38 trophies with Barça, said the timing to depart feels right because she knows the team will continue to win without her.
- Barcelona's two-time Ballon d'Or winner Alexia Putellas announces departure
- Alexia Putellas named Women's Champions League Player of the Season
"It's never the right moment to leave as such, but given how the season has gone [...] there are so many things to consider," she added.
"It was the most difficult decision of my life. Winning the fourth Champions League in Oslo was the moment for me. I felt that the team can still keep moving forward.
"It was a very emotional day [making the announcement]. It's hard to explain it. The whole season I have been thinking if it would be my last at Barça and yesterday I felt a huge void. My heart ached -- but today I am filled with love."
Putellas leaves Barça as her contract comes to and end next month after deciding not to take up an option to stay for an additional year.
After spending time with the club's academy, she re-joined in 2012 after spells with Espanyol and Levante and has gone on to score 232 goals in over 500 appearances -- only Lionel Messi (672) has scored more for either the men's or women's teams.
During that time, she has won 10 Liga F titles and four Champions Leagues, which led to her winning the Ballon d'Or in 2021 and 2022, while she also lifted the World Cup with Spain in 2023.
