Charlyn Corral

At three months old, Corral nearly died after her lung burst, and she later recalled her father telling her: if she had already beaten death, everything else had a purpose.

She has spoken openly about being bullied at school because she was very shy and was often alone with a ball.

Football has always been a family story for her. Corral said she and her brother George started out on teams their father put together in their neighborhood.

She studied Business Administration at the University of Louisville in the US.

She did not fall in love with football right away. When her father first put her in games with her brother, she said she actually preferred going off to play with her friends.

Her father’s training routines were intense from an early age. Corral remembered that he would ask her and her brother to complete 50 consecutive juggles before bed, and if they missed on the 49th touch, they had to start again.

She is particular about her boots and pre-match routine. She may train in laceless boots, but for matches she still prefers boots with laces because tying them is part of the feeling of truly being ready to play.