‘I don’t lose very often!’ - Ballon d’Or winner Aitana Bonmati explains how she developed elite mentality with Barcelona & World Cup champions Spain

The classy 25-year-old midfielder has seen her stock soar of late, to the point that she is also the strong favourite to be named The FIFA Best Women’s Player at a glitzy awards ceremony in London on January 15. It would come as no surprise were she to walk away with another top prize - having picked up a useful habit of landing major honours.

Bonmati has told FIFA’s official website of responding to any rare setbacks that are suffered with club and country: “Truth be told, I don’t lose very often. I’m fortunate enough to play for Barcelona, who hardly ever lose, and Spain don’t lose very much either. Sometimes tough moments – defeats – help you to get better. It’s pretty cool to win all the time, sure, but it makes you believe you’re doing everything right. At Barcelona, our Champions League defeat by Lyon a couple of years ago showed us the things we had to improve, and the following year we won the tournament. It comes down to how you react to these things when they happen. You can either lose heart and give up, or you can pinpoint your mistakes and move forward, knowing that other opportunities are around the corner and you can work on the stuff you need to improve.”

Bonmati’s natural ability has helped her to reach the very top, but she has also worked hard on mastering the mental side of elite competition. She added: “I’d say it’s a mix of factors. I’ve always worked on the mental side of things with psychologists, because I think it’s something we need in our lives. And not just in the professional arena, but also on a personal level, as we all have shortcomings and it’s important to work on them. I’ve been attending psychology sessions since I was 13. Psychology has helped me get to know myself better, because it’s crucial to know yourself well, accepting your mistakes and understanding what you want to improve. The moment you tell yourself 'OK, so this is how I am, but I want to improve because this is just causing me problems', that’s a sign you’re getting down to work. Psychology has really helped me a lot. But experience gives you a lot too. As the years go by, you become more mature, you get more experience in the football world, but also in terms of your emotions. You’ve dealt with certain emotions many times, so you know what you want and what you don’t want – you get to know yourself, as I said. That’s life – you know yourself on a deeper level.”

Bonmati is chasing down more medals with Barcelona in 2024, as they look to defend domestic and European titles, while Spain’s World Cup triumph has ensured that they will be involved in a bid for gold at the Paris Olympic Games.