It is now official, the Costa Rican leaves the PSG for China, after 12 years spent in France. A beautiful course tainted by a knee injury that has not resumed since the beginning of the season. A start that happens at the right time for the player, according to Patrice Lair.


Shirley Cruz Traña arrives in France in January 2006, at the age of 21 to join the squad of Olympique Lyonnais. With Lyon, the Costa Rican will discover the Champions League, the taste of victory and it will be a beautiful record.

The midfielder will not take much time to make his mark and win in the space of a season and a half as essential in the workforce Rhone. In Lyon, Shirley Cruz will know everything. She is one of the girls present at the first title of champion of France in 2007, the first of a series of eleven coronations, still in progress. Shirley will win '' only '' six, since in 2012 she leaves OL to reach the capital.


A nice record with Lyon


At the age of 26, she leaves Lyon with two Cups of France (2008 and 2012) and three consecutive European finals, including two victories (2011 and 2012). Moreover, during the third final of the Champions League (won 2-0 in 2012) against Frankfurt, it is she who provokes the penalty in the quarter of an hour of play then transformed by Eugénie Le Sommer who opens the scoring for OL.

When she arrived in Paris, Shirley Cruz met Farid Benstiti, the coach who had her start in Lyon, before being replaced by Patrice Lair. But the arrival of the Costa Rican international at PSG also coincides with the period when the Paris team is developing more. It has been a year since the Qataris invested in the club, and some ways are starting to be made available to girls, including the fact that they become all professional, as in Lyon.

The arrival of Shirley in Paris foreshadows ambitions of the club. However, in five seasons at PSG, Cruz will only know lost finals. Two Champions League finals (2015 and 2017) and two French Cup finals (2014 and 2017). She quickly became an executive, named D1 player of the year by the FFF in her first season in the capital, and will become captain of the PSG.


A knee injury that lasts


In 2016, she meets Patrice Lair, whom she has known during her last two seasons in Lyon. He is full of praise for his former captain, who has been replaced since the beginning of the season by Formiga. For him, Shirley is simply a player "of a very great class, and that brought me a lot, whether in Lyon or Paris Saint-Germain. "

Very attached to this player, the Paris coach explained the state of form of the mid-32, author last year of a dazzling second part of the season, and probably the best Parisian on the two finals lost the season last in front of the ogre Lyonnais: "It has sacred problems in the knee. She had surgery this summer in Costa Rica and I think it was not a success because she came back very late. The match in Lyon [in December 2017] showed that she was no longer the top player physically. "


And when asked if he was not tempted to keep it until June, as was the case with Cristiane last year, so that she could end the current season with the Paris Saint Germain. Patrice Lair responds bluntly that no. "She could not play. Frankly it was too complicated. For 10-15 days she was fine, then after she was recovering a little hiccup. And a Shirley Cruz at 20%, that does not interest me. "

Adding then, prefer to want to trust young people, "It may not be the same talent, but we must give a chance also to young people. "

Geyoro, more empowered?


Leave room for the youngest, especially those who are already settled in this Parisian workforce. This is the question that was asked of Patrice Lair, especially about the 20-year-old blue international, Grace Geyoro. "I already give him a lot of responsibilities. I played it behind last time in Lille. If I did not trust this player, I would not put her in some key positions, "explains Patrice Lair.

Versatile, Grace Geyoro can position itself as a solution to different positions For Paris, including a defensive sector decreased with the departure of Laure Georges Bayern and the injury of Emma Berglund early January during the match Cup France against Lille .

"[Grace Geyoro], I think it's a girl who's better off in the midfield. Lair adds. A midfielder where the cards could be redistributed again with the departure Shirley Cruz, real metronome of the Parisian environment in recent years.


A sector in which Patrice Lair believes that it has a "certain wealth", with Aminata Diallo, Vero Boquete or Jennifer Hermoso. For the Parisian coach the challenge is to "put them in the right system" especially to seek to be "better in possession of the ball in the middle". An area in which Shirley Cruz will undoubtedly be difficult to replace, despite the good start of the season Jennifer Hermoso regularly positioned behind the attackers.


Shirley Cruz says goodbye to France


In China, Shirley Cruz will play at Jiangsu Suning FC, a club coached by former Lyon coach Gérard Prêcheur. Patrice Lair wishes him then to be able to catch the hair of the beast there and make a complete season there. "It was the right moment for her, I think. She had this opportunity in China to take a good contract before stopping. I think it's a good thing, "he says.


For its part, Shirley Cruz paid a last tribute to its French fans, on social networks, before flying to Asia after 131 matches and 30 goals scored under the jersey of PSG: "I want to thank you for these extraordinary years, for the welcome I had in France. It was an honor to wear these two jerseys and win all these titles. France has been for me a land of welcome and will remain eternally in my heart. "


Photo credit: Team Pics / PSG