Andreea Maria Părăluță

Andreea didn't start playing football until she was 14. She initially played as an outfield player, but after becoming frustrated with her team's goalkeeper, she told her coach that she could do a better job in goal — and he took her seriously.

Her older sister played a crucial role in starting her football career. She found Andreea her first football team, while Andreea had previously enjoyed playing both football and handball with boys in the schoolyard.

Sport was already part of her family: her mother loved handball, while her uncle was passionate about football.

When she arrived at her first club, Andreea didn't even own football boots. She turned up in trainers, and her coach accompanied her to buy her first pair.

Her nickname is “Pără”, which is how teammates at both club and national-team level referred to her.

Andreea's childhood goalkeeper idol was Hope Solo. She followed the American goalkeeper's performances whenever the US national team was on television or online.

By the time she moved to Atlético Madrid, Andreea had already learned Hungarian during her six years in Târgu Mureș and joked that this would make learning Spanish easier.

She graduated from the Liceul cu Program Sportiv in Târgu Mureș and completed a university degree in International Relations and European Studies at Petru Maior University.

Her idea of free time is surprisingly low-key. In one interview, she joked that she liked lying in bed and watching Grey's Anatomy.