Barcelona kicks off its UEFA Women's Champions League title defense this week, aiming to become only the fourth team to win the competition in consecutive years.

Led by 2023 Ballon d'Or holder Aitana Bonmati and two-time winner Alexia Putellas (photo), as well as other World Cup conquering stars, Barcelona is tasked with refining perfection.

Jonatan Giraldez's team came from two goals behind to beat Wolfsburg, 3-2, in June in Eindhoven, clinching a second Champions League win.

Barca has reached four of the last five finals, winning twice, and can dream of extending its dominance in Bilbao next May.

Only traditional giants Lyon and Wolfsburg, as well as Sweden's Umea, have won the Champions League in consecutive years.

Barcelona lifted a treble last season -- Spain's Liga F, the Champions League and the Spanish Super Cup -- but was disqualified from the Copa de la Reina.

Giraldez wants the team to go one better this season and win everything, starting with their opener against Benfica on Tuesday.

"There's no need to look at where the ceiling is (for this team), but instead to get up every day to work and improve," he said last week. "It is very difficult to match and surpass last year's performance, but we have to work for it. We won three of four titles, so there is still room for improvement and we have to work for that."

Barcelona faces familiar opponents in the group, in Swedish champion Rosengard and Portuguese champion Benfica, both of which were also in its group last season, and Germany's Eintracht Frankfurt.

"They are team that we know because we played against Benfica and Rosengard last season in the group stage," said Giraldez in October. "Eintracht, meanwhile, are a very strong side -- I had the chance to watch them live last season against Wolfsburg, before the Champions League final."

Barcelona's squad looks as strong as ever, with Salma Paralluelo starting the season in spectacular form.

The Spanish forward, who finished third in the Ballon d'Or, smashed in four goals against Sevilla earlier in November as she began her campaign to win the trophy currently held by Bonmati.

The playmaker showed supporters the golden ball before the Sevilla match and also paraded it before Barcelona's men's team beat Alaves in La Liga on Sunday.

There was no debate over the women's Ballon d'Or -- Bonmati was the outstanding candidate.

Bonmati's sublime midfield performances ease pressure on Putellas, who is still looking for her top level after a long-term knee injury.

"The surgeon told me I won't get cleared to play and (be able to) perform straight away, but that it's a process," said Putellas in October. "They told me a year and a half, and that's in December."

Barcelona do not have a clear outstanding option for center forward, and Putellas may end up taking on the role as a false nine.

Those three Spanish players are key element's of Giraldez's side, but the supporting cast is remarkably strong with explosive winger Caroline Graham Hansen to England duo Keira Walsh and Lucy Bronze, and Swedish dynamo Fridolina Rolfo.

Patri Guijarro, who netted twice in the win over Wolfsburg, and Mapi Leon, are two other key pillars, who missed Spain's World Cup triumph in the fight over improving conditions for the team.

If there is one significant doubt about the Catalans, it is their track record against record eight-time winner Lyon.

The two sides have met four times with Lyon triumphing on every occasion, scoring 10 goals to Barcelona's three.

The French side beat Barca in the 2022 and 2019 finals, as they won five titles in a row between 2016 and 2020.

Barcelona should fly through the group stage -- they scored 15 against Benfica in two games last season, and 10 against Rosengard -- and will be keeping a close eye on the French giants after that.

UEFA Women's Champions League Group A: Barcelona, Rosengard, Benfica (Paige Almendariz), Ein. Frankfurt.Group B: Lyon (Lindsey Horan), Slavia Prague (*Franny Cerna, Molly McLaughlin. Haleigh Stackpole, Michelle Xiao), St. Poelten, Brann.Group C: Bayern Munich, Paris SG (Korbin Albert), Roma, Ajax (Lily Yohannes).Group D: Chelsea (Mia Fishel), Real Madrid, Hacken, Paris FC.Note: In parentheses are Americans.*Plays for Czech Republic.

Elsewhere, Lyon will be desperate to reclaim a crown it had won six times in seven years before last season.

The perennial French champions lost in the quarterfinals on penalties to Chelsea and there have been changes at the club since then.

Lyon was bought by American entrepreneur Michele Kang, meaning they are now a separate entity from the Olympique Lyonnais men's team.

It continues to boast a fearsome squad that should compete, with a spine of Chile goalkeeper Christiane Endler, France center back Wendie Renard, U.S. midfielder Lindsey Horan and former Ballon d'Or winner Ada Hegerberg up front.

Coach Sonia Bompastor has also welcomed France forward Kadidiatou Diani from rival Paris Saint-Germain.

"We have regrets at what happened last season. There was a lot of frustration and disappointment at losing in the quarterfinals," admitted Bompastor recently. "We want to give ourselves a chance of getting to the final and winning it. We have the quality to do that."

Lyon should top a group containing Slavia Prague, Austria's St. Poelten and Brann of Norway.

Chelsea, meanwhile, was handed a tougher draw in Group D with Real Madrid, Sweden's Hacken and Paris FC, which eliminated Arsenal and German former champions Wolfsburg in qualifying.

With Manchester United also losing in qualifying, Chelsea is the only English club in the group stage as it looks to go one better than 2021, when it lost the finals to Barcelona.

Long-serving manager Emma Hayes recently announced she would be leaving the club at the end of the season and so she is determined to go out on a high.

"I've taken this team to the top and I always said I wanted to leave at the top," Hayes said this week.

Chelsea's squad is formidable, led by Australia's Sam Kerr, the Ballon d'Or runner-up.

There is also England captain Millie Bright and winger Lauren James, a breakout star at the World Cup.

U.S. midfielder Catarina Macario, one of the stars of Lyon's 2022 championship season, arrived to strengthen a team that lost to Barcelona in last season's semifinals but has not recovered from a knee injury suffered 17 months ago and was left out of the team registered with UEFA for the group stage

Real Madrid, with Spain World Cup hero Olga Carmona and Colombian sensation Linda Caicedo, will hope to make a big impression this time, too.

The remaining group looks the most competitive, with German champion Bayern Munich, PSG, Ajax and Roma together in Group C.

This is the third season since the straight knockout format was dispensed with and a 16-team group stage introduced.

Following the exits of Wolfsburg, Arsenal and United in qualifying, there may soon be a growing clamor for the group stage to be expanded further.

While women's soccer keeps growing in popularity, the prize money on offer from UEFA remains minuscule compared to the men's version.

A total of 24 million euros ($25.6 million) will be distributed to clubs. The winners standing to earn around 1.5 million euros ($1.6 million).

rbs/pb/as/mw Agence France-Presse