Women's winners remember their glory days

Tyresö FF will be looking to become the eights different club to win either the UEFA Women's Cup or UEFA Women's Champions League when they face VfL Wolfsburg in Lisbon on Thursday. As the big kick-off approaches, players from each of the previous winners – 1. FFC Frankfurt, Umeå IK, 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam, Arsenal LFC, FCR 2001 Duisburg, Olympique Lyonnais and Wolfsburg – recall their day of triumph.

2002: Steffi Jones
1. FFC Frankfurt 2-0 Umeå IK
I even managed to score a goal in that final, before I then went to the US. It was the first time that we had played in a men's stadium, in a big stadium, and it was raining cats and dogs. It was really very big for us. Something that was normal for the men's teams was for us a real highlight. And then the year after, you have to see that every year it became bigger and bigger, with more spectators. The clubs invested more, trying to really fill up the stadiums, and made real events out of it. And I must say that this Champions League final in general is really something special. It's a great highlight.

2003: Hanna Ljungberg
Umeå IK 4-1/3-0 Fortuna Hjørring
In the final, we started with a win at home. Then, in Hjorring, we got an early goal which settled any nerves we might have had. I remember that I was called to do a doping test after the final whistle, which meant that I missed the beginning of our celebrations! Winning the UEFA Women's Cup had an enormous importance for us. There is something special about being the best in Europe. It meant a lot for the city too ... We won it again the year after – we had a super team and a great organisation around us.

2007: Jayne Ludlow
Arsenal LFC 1-0/0-0 Umeå IK
It was the culmination of a squad of girls who have been together for five or six years. And when you've been together that long and know each other that well, it makes such a difference, as you know people are going to dig in for you and your team-mates will work as hard as they can to get a result. People say we were lucky, but you've got to be lucky to win championships and trophies. But we worked hard and we deserved it as well. It was classed as the Marta v Kelly Smith show, but unfortunately Kelly missed it due to her ban which she'll regret for the rest of her life. It is an achievement I would like before I retire to get to another one of those finals. To say you're in the best club team in Europe is the pinnacle.

2009: Annike Krahn
FCR 2001 Duisburg 6-0/1-1 Zvezda-2005 Perm
This final was really a great experience that none of us will ever forget. It was an incredible success from a sporting point of view; it was our first participation in the UEFA Women's Cup and we eliminated holders Frankfurt and Lyon, another top favourite, and then we won the title. None of us could have expected this. I was just a little annoyed that after we won 6-0 in the first leg, the level of our play was not as high in the second leg. It wasn't that important that I made it 1-1; more important was the breathtaking crowd in the MSV Arena. As an international, you are used to playing in front of a crowd, but it was the best atmosphere I have ever experienced in a club game.

2010: Jennifer Zietz
1. FFC Turbine Potsdam 0-0 (7-6pens) Olympique Lyonnais
One moment is very clear. When [Anna Felicitas] Sarholz saved the penalty and everybody just started to run towards her. Before the match, I said that I definitely wanted to take a ball from the final, and so everyone was running towards there and I started to feel the first cramps in my legs, so I had to slow down and I walked to the penalty area and grabbed the ball. Those are the little moments you remember – also being in Madrid, which is a beautiful city. We were there the whole week and we even brought the players that couldn't play; that was a real experience for the team, another shared experience together. You can't describe what the game felt like; physically, we were gone.

2011: Lotta Schelin
Olympique Lyonnais 2-0 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam
I think it was an incredible match. We did everything we could, we didn't let them create a lot of chances in front of goal, and we scored twice – the last one was totally fantastic. We were solid, and we played really well, even if the game was sometimes quite open. Maybe we were a bit stressed out at the beginning, maybe it was a little bit of nerves and everything, but at the same time I think we played a good game throughout, for the whole 90 minutes. I can't say anything negative about this game.

2013: Nadine Kessler
VfL Wolfsburg 1-0 Olympique Lyonnais
It is certainly something that stays in your memory and motivates you. It had an incredibly important meaning for us, as it seemed to be an impossible mission beforehand. It is just a fantastic competition, and it was an unforgettable experience for us. We were the underdogs then, Lyon went there as clear favourites, having been unbeaten up to then. Nobody really reckoned on us.