Boquete on 'emotional' 2015 final win and repaying Paris

Two years ago Verónica Boquete was celebrating her part in the UEFA Women'’s Champions League final defeat of Paris Saint-Germain – but she aims to put that right in Cardiff on 1 June.

Spanish international Boquete was on the FFC Frankfurt team that beat Paris with a late winner in Berlin two years ago. That was 12 months on from Boquete suffering heartbreak with Tyresö against Wolfsburg in Lisbon but since last summer the 30-year-old has been a Paris player, aiding them to this season’s decider against Lyon.

Boquete spoke to UEFA.com about her memories of the 2015 final and how she now wants to make history for Paris.

On beating Paris in the 2015 final with Frankfurt ...

It was a special final, especially as I'd just lost one. Losing the final the year before with Tyresö was very painful, and I remember thinking while the Wolfsburg players were lifting the trophy that I didn't know where I was going to go, but that I wanted to be back the following year to lift that trophy.

So getting through to that final brought a lot of tension with it, because there's always the chance you might lose. PSG were a very strong side, but I think we played a very solid game, as German teams almost always do.

We were confident that we'd have a chance in the final, and looking back on the game, I think we were the better side. There were times after the referee blew the whistle when you weren't sure if that was the case or not. I remember how much I wanted to win that trophy.

And then I just enjoyed the moment, the celebrations, having my family there in the stadium. It was special. It was emotional, and I still remember it as if it were last week.

On a chance to win a final for Paris ...

Well, right from the start of the season, especially since we qualified for the final, I've been making jokes here and there, saying: "I'm going to give back what I took from you a couple of years ago."

One of my objectives in coming here was to help PSG to be a great team, to be the best team in Europe, to get to the final and help the team to do that. And I'm happy to have contributed to that.

But we're talking about a great club here, perhaps the biggest club in France, known all over the world, but which haven't won [UEFA titles]. If memory serves me, the men won the Cup Winners' Cup [in 1996], which is now defunct. So if the club wins the Champions League, it would go down in history, and if the women got there first, that's something that would really get noticed at the club.

It would give the women's section a push, help it to take off and attract even more support for women's football in the club.

On using her experience of playing in finals ...

I hope I can help when it comes to keeping emotions and pre-match tension in check. And then during the game, knowing how to cope when we're under pressure, and helping my team-mates and colleagues when we have to push up and get further forward.

Above all, and this is one thing I picked up from experienced players who played in other finals with me, they calmed me down. It's always better when you know what you're up against. We know the team we're facing. It's the first final for many players, but I think it's important to know that you've got other people around you who've played in others, who infuse you with confidence and keep you calm.

On expectations for Cardiff ...

I think the atmosphere's going to be great. At least there was in the two finals I've played in, and in the ones I've seen. And that's great for women's football. It's great for the final. It's great for the spectators. And it's great for the players.

When you play in front of a full stadium, it gives you extra strength and energy. And on the pitch it's going to be what we want it to be. If PSG don't go out there with their ideas straight, lacking in confidence and showing Lyon too much respect, then we'll really suffer.

If, however, we show our opponents respect but show strength in our strong points, then I hope we'll see an even game. That's what we want. We want to see an even game. We want to see both sides giving as good as they get.

We know we'll be up against some great players, but we've got some great players ourselves and we know that anything can happen in a final. One of our mottoes is 'Dream Big' and that's what we do.