Claudia Pina’s (Montcada i Rexac, 2001) relationship with the goal is an innate love affair. A gift that has accompanied him since he started playing on the parquet of the indoor soccer fields before opting for the grass fields. Now, at 23 years old, Pina goes out and enjoys Barcelona, the club of his life. “He has incorporated a nutritionist into his daily life so that, along with the work he does at the club, he can offer his best version,” says his closest entourage. A performance that, among many other things, was reflected in the iconic 5-0 scoreline that Johan Cruyff scored against St Pölten. A Cruyff-style acrobatic spur finish. “To be compared to Cruyff for that shot… it seems to me that I am very far away,” said Pina.
Johan Cruyff’s acrobatic spur goal against Atlético de Madrid on December 22, 1973
Whether with the head, spur or left foot, the forward formed at La Masia has already scored four goals in this edition of the Champions League. A figure that makes her the team’s top scorer, the same number as Mariona Caldentey, a former Barcelona player, now at Arsenal. Precisely Mariona’s departure has allowed Pina to climb positions in Pere Romeu’s team, with whom he has great harmony. Just like with the group that includes Cata Coll, Vicky López, Salma Paralluelo, Patri Guijarro and Jana Fernández, with whom he went up to Montserrat to set a candle for Moreneta. Wishing to win everything again with Barça.
“We signed her from Espanyol in 2013. At that time, Spanish women’s football was still very amateur.”
“No one has given him anything. It was his turn to succeed like this,” he tells The Vanguard Xavi Llorens, his first coach. “We signed her from Espanyol in 2013. At that time, Spanish women’s football was still very amateur. Barça, at the national level, owed and had very close control over the Espanyol and San Gabriel players. It wasn’t necessary to look much further,” says Llorens. But for a short time. In fact, Pina is part of the first generation of footballers who began to experience professionalization. “In January 2018, with Fran Sánchez on the bench, she became the youngest footballer to debut with the first team. It was against Zaragoza. I was 16 years, 5 months and 2 days,” Llorens recalls.
He was 16 years, 5 months and 2 days old.
In January 2018, with Fran Sánchez on the bench, she became the youngest footballer to debut with the first team
His career has been meteoric. Also in the international arena. In 2018 he won the Golden Ball and the Silver Boot in the U-17 World Cup that he won with Spain. She debuted with the senior team in 2021. But then she joined the fight of her teammates to get a more professional team. He gave up going to the last World Cup because his values demanded it. And, for the Olympic Games, she decided that the conditions she needed to be called up were already in place. Despite his talent, Tomé has never counted on her.
In 2018 Claudia Pina won the Golden Ball and the Silver Boot in the U-17 World Cup that she won with Spain
In his free time he likes to watch football. Play ping-pong and billiards. Supported by her parents, Bea and Arturo, and her sister Lucía, Pina has never stopped living in Montcada i Reixac. Except during 2020, when she left on loan to Sevilla. “The subsidiary had become too small for him. And in the first team there was a lot of competition,” recalls former Barça coach Lluís Cortés. “Markel Zubizarreta, then sports director, and I made it clear to him that the loan was for one year. We wanted her with us,” he adds. Proof of that will is that the club renewed it until 2023.
Markel Zubizarreta, then sports director, and I made it clear to him that the loan was for one year.”
In Seville he stood out as a playmaker with 9 goals and 8 assists in 34 games. Upon his return, everything was improving. Last season, Jonatan Giráldez’s last on the bench, was his best year with 42 games and 14 goals. “He participated in the League matches. More than a forward, I think Pina is a total midfielder with a lot of arrival and a lot of goals. He is tactically very intelligent and with that he makes up for more physical issues such as speed. In recent seasons, what improved the most was the defensive intensity,” Giráldez tells this newspaper from the United States.
Claudia Pina celebrates after scoring the third Blaugrana goal with her teammate Alexia Putellas
This year, while receiving interest from English, German and also United States teams, Pina inherited Mariona’s number 9. And, in some way, also your vacancy. “You will have a lot of competition. It remains to be seen what happens with Salma Paralluelo. There is also Alexia,” says Giráldez. “But I’m sure she will have a lot of minutes because she is very competitive,” he predicts.
In March 2023, she renewed until 2026. “She is a competitive player, who always smiles. She has learned to manage adverse situations and is now much more mature. It also helps young girls. He knows how difficult it is to get there,” adds Giráldez. For all that, there is not a day when he does not sign autographs or take photos with the public at the Johan Cruyff. There is also not a day that the fans do not chant his name.
#secrets #Claudia #Pinas #rise
