Carles Puyol: The Story Behind The Perfect Barcelona Captain

#5 Hard Work and Perseverance

While some players are born with amazing talents and some players have luck on their side, Carles Puyol was one of the players who worked extremely hard to get what he wanted. He was not a natural talent however, his willingness to adapt and work made him the best in every position that he played in. He started as a goalkeeper and then went on to become a striker. He broke records as a striker but was then transformed into a right back. After that he finally settled down as a center-back however, all this transformation took hard work, and that Puyol was ready to do.

It came from his own father’s mentality, the middle-class family man always worked and made sure that his son would also give it his best and not do a half-hearted job. Puyol fought through injuries and surgeries to continue playing for Barcelona and all of his hard work, selflessness, and perseverance was finally awarded in 2010. Puyol had led his team into the FIFA World Cup semi-finals against Germany.

The Germans had a strong defense and were not allowing the likes of Fernando Torres, David Villa, and Xavi to score. Puyol took matters into his own hands and in the 73rd minute, scored a towering header to propel the Spaniards into the finals. Not only did the defender stop a very dangerous German side, but he also scored the winning goal and at the end of the campaign, lifted the world cup.

Puyol’s story is one of hard work and determination, he had to give tryouts for Barca multiple times, and even after he was selected for La Masia, there were no guarantees that he would make the main team. However, he never let his mind stray away from his goal and he persisted till he won everything there was to win in club football, as well as international football.

What’s your favorite memory of Carles Puyol?