Millie Bright, Aitana Bonmati & GOAL's Team of the 2024-25 European Women's Season

Cecilia Ran Runarsdottir has been one of the most exciting goalkeeping prospects in the women's game for several years now, having made her senior debut in her native Iceland at a remarkable 13 years of age. As with most young players in her position, though, she has had to wait patiently for her big breakthrough, with it finally coming at Inter this season.

On loan from Bayern Munich, the 21-year-old was named Serie A's Goalkeeper of the Year after helping the Italian club boast the best defensive record in the division. Runarsdottir conceded 22 goals in 23 games - despite the expected goals statistic predicting she would let in more than 25 - and kept 10 clean sheets, the most in the league. Her save percentage (79.8) was also the best among goalkeepers to play more than one Serie A game, helping Inter to qualify for the Women's Champions League for the very first time.

There have been quite a few impressive right-backs in Europe this season. Lucy Bronze deserves a shoutout for a strong first year at Chelsea, with Ona Batlle putting in another fantastic campaign at Barcelona, too. But Ellie Carpenter sneaks ahead of both to land a spot in this XI after playing a crucial role for a Lyon side that, though only able to collect one trophy this term, has been one of the best in Europe all year.

Carpenter has a fantastic reading of the game, the kind of which was evident as she darted in to regain possession in the Premiere Ligue's Championship play-off, allowing Kadidiatou Diani to pick up the ball in a dangerous area and double Lyon's lead in the title-deciding clash with Paris Saint-Germain. She can provide assists herself with a wicked cross, too, and pop up with the odd goal here and there.

But despite playing for a team that is so dominant domestically, and one of the best on the continent, it remains incredibly impressive that none of that has had a negative impact on Carpenter's defensive nous, which is of real top quality.

Injuries to key attacking players meant it was Chelsea's defence that took centre stage in Sonia Bompastor's first season in charge, one which returned a domestic treble for just the second time in the history of the women's team. The Blues had the best defensive record in the Women's Super League and kept a clean sheet in the FA Cup final as that third and final trophy was sealed, with Nathalie Bjorn playing a key role at the heart of such solidity.

It's hard to illustrate how good Bjorn has been with stats. After all, she's been playing in one of the best teams and defences in Europe, so she's not going to lead the way for tackles made or anything like that. What says a lot, though, is the effusive praise that comes from her team-mates and manager when she's brought up, and the fact she was named Chelsea's Players' Player of the Year after one of the best campaigns in club history.

Arguably even more colossal in the Chelsea defence this year has been Millie Bright. The Blues' captain has had her injury setbacks in recent seasons, but she was essentially ever-present this time around, which played a huge part in her team's ability to be so strong in defence all year. It wasn't straightforward, either. Injuries to Kadeisha Buchanan, Maelys Mpome and Naomi Girma left Bright and Bjorn as Chelsea's only two centre-back options for most of the campaign, and yet they stood up tall and delivered.

When asked for a quick word on her captain, before the party to celebrate the Blues' unprecedented unbeaten WSL season began, Erin Cuthbert's response said it all. "Class," she told Sky Sports. "Plays every game, trains every session, works so hard, 100 percent relentless in training and I love that about her. Since I've been at the club, I've seen that every single day." That's what a good leader is all about - and Bright is a brilliant one.

One of the most important changes Renee Slegers made to turn Arsenal's season around involved giving Katie McCabe more license to get forward. The Gunners' build-up play and shape when doing so essentially allowed the Ireland captain to play as a second winger and that - combined with her natural attacking instincts and wicked left foot - resulted in a fantastic individual campaign.

No one created more chances in the WSL this term than McCabe, while only Mariona Caldentey (more on her later) completed more successful passes in the final third. It was a similar story in the Champions League, where the full-back was top for most successful crosses and in the top five for completed final-third passes. But McCabe isn't just an attacking asset; ranking among the top three in the Gunners' squad for tackles won in Europe and at home, and second for interceptions made in the WSL, her defensive qualities have also stood out in a superb season.

As Arsenal star Caldentey prepared to take on former club Barcelona in the Champions League final, it said a lot that the player she picked out from the Catalans' star-studded side was Patri Guijarro. Playing in a midfield with two double Ballon d'Or winners, in Alexia Putellas and Aitana Bonmati, the 27-year-old can be overlooked - but not by those who have played alongside her, as Caldentey did for nine years before her move to north London last summer.

"It's difficult to single out just one Barcelona player because they are all very good in their positions, some of the best in the world," the Gunners' forward explained. "But I would say that Patri is the player who makes the rest better and makes everything easier." It's a remarkable compliment that will not surprise anyone who has watched Barca in the past decade, with Guijarro reminding everyone this season just why many view her as the best holding midfielder on the planet.

It's hard to come up with new ways to describe just how good Bonmati is. Winner of the last two Ballons d'Or, she has been consistently brilliant again this year, directly involved in 18 goals in 26 league games and eight in 11 in the Champions League. The class she showed across both legs of Barca's 8-2 aggregate win over Chelsea in the European semi-finals stands out, with her goal at Stamford Bridge a real moment of quality.

That run might not have ended as Bonmati and Barca wanted, with Arsenal able to come out on top in the final, but don't let that take away from the fantastic season that so many of the Catalans' players have had, with Bonmati right up there as one of their best performers all year long.

Three years on from winning her second Ballon d'Or, Putellas has been back to her very best this season, racking up 20 goals and 15 assists in just 34 appearances. It's not been easy since she claimed back-to-back Golden Balls, with a brutal ACL injury derailing her right in her prime. However, injuries have been put well and truly behind her this year, with the midfielder playing a starring role in Barcelona - who, despite defeat on Saturday, can still secure a domestic treble by winning in next week's Copa de la Reina final.

“She’s the perfect example of hard work, sacrifice and perseverance," Batlle, the Barca full-back, said of Putellas last week, speaking to ARA. "Despite the injuries, she always believed she could return to the top. When you keep trying, eventually you make it - especially with her quality and work ethic."

Another of those three players to manage at least 10 goals and 10 assists in Liga F this season was Caroline Graham Hansen, who has asserted herself as the best winger in the world yet again. The Norway international was a serious contender for last year's Ballon d'Or and should be right up there in the mix again this time around, having played a crucial role in another strong campaign for Barcelona.

Only Bonmati created more chances in the Champions League this season than Graham Hansen, which was also the case in Liga F. Her tricky wing play was a constant source of danger for any of Barcelona's opponents, and a source of goals for the Catalans themselves.

There were a lot of contenders for this place in GOAL's XI. Ewa Pajor scored more than 40 goals for Barcelona in her first season in Catalunya, Alessia Russo played a crucial role in Arsenal's unprecedented run to the Champions League final, Clara Mateo was crowned Player of the Year in France and fired Paris FC back into Europe with 18 goals in 20 league games, while Cristiana Girelli rolled back the years with a prolific campaign that helped Juventus reassert themselves at the very top of Italian women's football.

It's Melchie Dumornay, though, who gets the nod. Her numbers might not be on par with some of the aforementioned names, but they're not far behind, with her all-round play and ability to deliver in big moments marking her out as one of the most impressive performers in Europe all season long.

Don't let Lyon's shock elimination from the Champions League fool you - not many have had a better individual year than Durmonay.

Crowned the best player in the WSL earlier this month, Caldentey was outstanding in her first season at Arsenal. Ranked joint-second for most direct goal involvements in the English top-flight, her quality was integral to the Gunners' turnaround under Slegers and especially their triumph in the Champions League. The Spain international played starring roles in the comeback wins over both Real Madrid, in the quarter-finals, and Lyon, in the semi-finals, marking both of those top performances with goals as Arsenal enjoyed an incredible European adventure.

“She’s a total footballer for me,” Slegers said of Caldentey recently. “She’s got everything. I think she’s got intelligence, technical abilities, she’s got an extremely high work rate, she’s a winner." She's shown all of that in a sublime season.