Jonatan Giráldez: Difference between revisions

On 18 December 2023, in the break before the [[2024 National Women's Soccer League season|2024 National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) season]], Giráldez announced that he would leave Barcelona at the end of their season, primarily because he "believed that a change could be very good for [his] family".<ref name=":3" /> There had been rumours that he was leaving Barcelona to join an NWSL team.<ref name=":3" /> Spanish sports media announced later in the day that Giráldez was set to join the NWSL club [[Washington Spirit]];<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-12-18 |title=El destino de Jonatan Giráldez: el Washington Spirit de Michele Kang, la magnate del fútbol femenino |url=https://www.relevo.com/futbol/destino-jonatan-giraldez-washington-spirit-20231218115351-nt.html |access-date=2024-01-10 |website=Relevo |language=es}}</ref> the club formally announced his signing on 9 January 2024, ahead of the [[2024 NWSL Draft]],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brockway |first=Ella |date=2024-01-09 |title=Spirit finds its new coach in Jonatan Giráldez, who led Barcelona to dominance |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/01/09/washington-spirit-jonatan-giraldez-coach/ |access-date=2024-01-10 |work=Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}</ref> and coached his first match on 6 July 2024.<ref name=NewCoach/> In a press conference a week before this, he asked for short-term patience as he adapted to the league, while saying that his goal was to make the Spirit "the best team in America."<ref name=":6" />

Having already spoken communicable [[English language|English]], Giráldez sought to improve his language skills before moving to the United States in 2024, and swapped language challenges with Barcelona's Norwegian winger [[Caroline Graham Hansen]] as he helped her advance with [[Spanish language|Spanish]] and she helped his English.<ref name=":6" />