Emotional Van de Donk disappointed by Lyon failure in Women's Champions League final
Aitana Bonmati and Alexia Putellas inspired Barcelona past Lyon in the Women's Champions League final on Saturday.
Danielle van de Donk acknowledged Lyon were deserved losers in the Women's Champions League final against Barcelona as the French side capitulated in Bilbao.
Aitana Bonmati and Alexia Putellas were both on target in the second half, as Barca beat Lyon for the first time and won the Champions League for a third season out of the last four.
Ada Hegerberg, the all-time leading scorer in the Women's Champions League, headed over from Lyon's best chance as the eight-time European champions offered little apart from that.
A disappointed Van de Donk offered an honest appraisal after the 2-0 defeat, telling DAZN: "I'm very emotional. Nobody likes to lose a final and we were here to win it.
"It's a shame we didn't create enough. Barcelona deserved the win but I'm proud of my team, we gave it our all."
Van de Donk and Lindsey Horan found space tough to come by against an impressive Barca, with the Lyon midfielder admitting there could have been a change to the game plan.
"I play more as a 10 and Lindsey a bit more as a six," she added. "We were a bit low in the midfield so couldn't get the press right and that is usually our strength.
"Credit to Barcelona, they did amazing. I wish we could have pressed them a bit more, I think that could have made a difference."
Bonmati played a key role in helping Barcelona become the first team to win three domestic trophies and the European crown in a single season, since the rebranding of the Women's Champions League.
Jonatan Giraldez's side have scored 129 goals in Liga F this season, winning 27 of their 28 games and drawing the other, conceding just nine times.
To further their celebrations, Barcelona also finally ended their struggles against Lyon.
"It's the first time we've beaten Lyon, I'm proud of the team, and we know that with these fans we have, we can't fail," Bonmati told DAZN.
"It's incredible what we're living through as a team, I'm so lucky... to see we're creating that for so many people and the historic amount of fans we've brought.
"It's the proudest I've felt, I wouldn't change it for anything."