For Clara Casajuana, stepping on the field at Auburn feels straight out of Hollywood.“I’ve always seen movies of United States and when I come here, I was like, I’m in a movie,” Casajuana said.There’s a big cast and a script she’s still learning line by line.“I learn English like all my life in high school but come here it’s a lot different because people speak faster than me. It’s difficult, but I’m trying,” Casajuana said.While there’s some adjustment there, her game doesn’t need much like a movie star, she’s just got “it.” Where she came to find “it” is in her home of Sabadell, Spain where she started playing soccer at four years old.“I started playing in a club near Sabadell. Then when I was 11, Barcelona saw me and I started playing for them,” she said.That’s world-renowned FC Barcelona, where Clara played on a reserve team.“I’m a fan of Barcelona so to play for that club, I feel the colors when I play,” Casajuana said.It was there she learned “tiki taka,” Barcelona’s style of play predicated on short passing and movement. It’s also where her family cheered her on from the sidelines, now they’re in Auburn’s stands watching her bring that style to the plains.“I was looking for a college that plays like my style of football, ‘tiki-taka’ like Barça and James is a coach that wants to play like that,” Casajuana said.Clara’s still adjusting, but she’s come to love the area and has found a few restaurants that she likes, including like Chipotle. But it’s the people she’s really fallen for. “We are like a family, we always have the back of each other and I think that is going to show up when we start playing,” Casajuana said.Her story began in Spain, but it’s playing out like a movie right here in Auburn.“I think here in Auburn I can grow more as a soccer player and I can learn a lot of things that in Spain I think I couldn’t learn, so here is the place,” Casajuana said.
For Clara Casajuana, stepping on the field at Auburn feels straight out of Hollywood.
“I’ve always seen movies of United States and when I come here, I was like, I’m in a movie,” Casajuana said.
There’s a big cast and a script she’s still learning line by line.
“I learn English like all my life in high school but come here it’s a lot different because people speak faster than me. It’s difficult, but I’m trying,” Casajuana said.
While there’s some adjustment there, her game doesn’t need much like a movie star, she’s just got “it.” Where she came to find “it” is in her home of Sabadell, Spain where she started playing soccer at four years old.
“I started playing in a club near Sabadell. Then when I was 11, Barcelona saw me and I started playing for them,” she said.
That’s world-renowned FC Barcelona, where Clara played on a reserve team.
“I’m a fan of Barcelona so to play for that club, I feel the colors when I play,” Casajuana said.
It was there she learned “tiki taka,” Barcelona’s style of play predicated on short passing and movement. It’s also where her family cheered her on from the sidelines, now they’re in Auburn’s stands watching her bring that style to the plains.
“I was looking for a college that plays like my style of football, ‘tiki-taka’ like Barça and James is a coach that wants to play like that,” Casajuana said.
Clara’s still adjusting, but she’s come to love the area and has found a few restaurants that she likes, including like Chipotle. But it’s the people she’s really fallen for.
“We are like a family, we always have the back of each other and I think that is going to show up when we start playing,” Casajuana said.
Her story began in Spain, but it’s playing out like a movie right here in Auburn.
“I think here in Auburn I can grow more as a soccer player and I can learn a lot of things that in Spain I think I couldn’t learn, so here is the place,” Casajuana said.