Maria Antònia Mínguez Martín (born 5 March 1947) is a Spanish former footballer and women's football pioneer in Catalonia.[1] She played in FC Barcelona Femení's first-ever match on 25 December 1970,[2][3][4] thus becoming the first goalkeeper in the club's history.[5][6][7]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Maria Antònia Mínguez Martín | ||
| Date of birth | 5 March 1947 | ||
| Place of birth | Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1970–1974 | Barcelona | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Early life
editMínguez grew up with a strict father and brothers who played football.[8][7] She decided to start playing to deal with her grief, after her fiancé was killed in a traffic accident on her 23rd birthday,[8] responding to an advertisement recruiting girls to play in a charity football tournament.[5][7]
Although she had initially tried out as a field player, she became a goalkeeper on the recommendation of coach Antoni Ramallets, whom she had long admired.[7][8] She kept the fact that she had started training a secret from her father until the day before her first match.[7]
Career
edit
Together with Carme Nieto, Alicia Estivill, Lolita Ortiz, and Immaculada Cabecerán, the main promoter of the event, Mínguez contested the first match of the women's FC Barcelona team against Unió Esportiva Centelles on 25 December 1970, which was held at Camp Nou in front of 60,000 spectators.[2][3][4] She was the team's goalkeeper and her performance in the penalty shootout was decisive in achieving victory (4–3).[2] She later stated that "we won that first trophy because of the penalties that I saved. I was the heroine".[6] She was taught to "stop everything that was shot at me" by the second coach César, who eventually told the first coach Antoni Ramallets that "she was ready".[6]
Mínguez stayed at the club for four and a half years, from 1970 to 1974, and during this period, she alternated with fellow goalkeeper Núria Llansà.[2][9][7]
Post-football career
editMínguez gave up football because of a boyfriend who was against her playing.[8] From her retirement from football until her actual retirement she worked as a nurse.[2]
In 2021, Mínguez appeared on a television programme on SER Catalunya, discussing the abuse she and other players endured for playing football in the 1970s.[7]
References
edit- ^ Tomás Belenguer, Manuel (December 2021). Barça femení: Història des dels orígens fins al triplet [Women's Barça - History from the origins to the treble] (in Catalan). Barcelona: Base. pp. 331–332. ISBN 978-84-19007-00-1.
- ^ a b c d e "Agradecimiento de las pioneras al Club y a la Agrupación" [Thanks from the pioneers to the Club and the Group]. www.fcbarcelona.com (in Spanish). 25 January 2021. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
- ^ a b "FC Barcelona Women's Golden Anniversary". www.fcbarcelona.com. 24 December 2020. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
- ^ a b "Se cumplen 50 años de la primera vez que el Camp Nou abrió las puertas a las mujeres" [50 years have passed since the first time Camp Nou opened its doors to women]. www.marca.com (in Spanish). 25 December 2020. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
- ^ a b "Les mans del Barça femení" [The hands of the women's Barça]. www.elperiodico.cat (in Catalan). 16 May 2021. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
- ^ a b c "Las Pioneras del Barça" [The Pioneers of Barça]. www.mundodeportivo.com (in Spanish). 6 January 2021. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g Navarro, Eduardo (18 May 2021). "Los inicios del fútbol femenino: "Me llamaban guarra y me gritaban que me fuera a la cocina"". SER 100 (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 August 2024.
- ^ a b c d Vicente, Sandra (1 May 2022). "Las pioneras del Barça femenino hace 50 años: "Mi novio no quería que jugara"". elDiario.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 August 2024.
- ^ "La història comença amb setze heroïnes" [The story begins with sixteen heroines]. www.sport.es (in Catalan). 24 December 2020. Retrieved 27 May 2024.