Joel Roca: hope comes from Camprodon
Everything points to Joel Roca (Camprodon, 2005) having to adapt quickly to the spotlight and noise of football . He must move from his current, anonymous life, dominated by simplicity and calm, to the pressure and professionalism of the king of sports. The Girona youth player, whose contract was renewed in July until 2029, is knocking on the door of the first team, and against Wolverhampton at Montilivi, he opened it wide with a capital letter of introduction: a superb goal and, above all, a great overall performance, earning him the MVP of the match, which confirms him as one of the most exciting projects.
When the ball flew into the top corner in the 48th edition of the Costa Brava Trophy , he felt happiness and a sense of liberation. "It was an initial demonstration of his desire to make his debut and then excel in the First Division ," the player's entourage told La Vanguardia . The young left winger, just 20 years old, is at the beginning of his footballing journey or, depending on how you look at it, at the end of a long path that began when he was a child in Camprodon.
Roca, who played for La Masia and is Girona's youngest debutant, changed his mentality after a serious injury.The bucolic village of Ripollès, close to France and iconic for its medieval bridge over the River Ter, has shaped his personality: restless yet shy and calm. He loves nature, feels comfortable surrounded by mountains and fields, and, whenever possible, always with his loved ones. His father, David, runs a garden center with disabled workers; his mother, Alicia, is a civil servant in Figueres; and his older sister, Matilda, are the pillars of his life. So too are his lifelong friends, with whom Joel escapes to somewhere every summer (this year to Puerto de Santa María) or spends time with them in the village, his refuge when he's on the back foot from football.
But with the ball, he transforms. He becomes a brazen and unpredictable player, a nuisance to his opponents whose eagerness doesn't diminish depending on whether they're facing a modest or a big team. His first goals came at the Camprodon football academy, but soon, when he was just nine years old, a Barça scout recruited him for La Masia. Of rural origin, accustomed to the freedom of the countryside, he didn't adapt to either Barcelona or the more rigid life at the Blaugrana training center, where Joel suffered a difficult time.
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After his time at Barça came to an end and he returned to his hometown at the age of 14, Girona convinced him to continue his progression at their residence, closer to his roots. Sergi Mora, who coached the youth teams, and Albert Siria, director of youth football, were key. The U12 category quickly became too small for him, and in 2022, at the age of 17, he became the youngest debutant in the history of the Blaugrana first team against Celta Vigo. By then, the club had already provided him with an apartment in Girona, which he shared for a time with his sister. Everything was going smoothly, already under Míchel's radar without much effort. But before the start of the 2023-24 season, a historic one at that, his progress halted when he tore the anterior cruciate ligament and the external meniscus in his left knee. The injury made Joel realize the volatility of football, which went from being a hobby to a profession. He started paying more attention to his diet, sleep, and physical preparation. Before, he barely watched games. Now he studies his opponents.
Recovered a year later, he left the shelter of Girona to do a master's degree in maturity with Mirandés, where he played on loan last season in the Second Division. The Catalan, who mixed minutes coming off the bench (25) with starts (18), learned order, defensive effort, gained muscle and adapted to being a second striker, further away from the wing. A positive experience that nearly culminated with promotion to the First Division. In his first full year as a professional away from Girona (and his Camprodon), he did not lose his essence: he lived in Sajazarra, a village surrounded by vineyards with just over 100 inhabitants in La Rioja, 15 km from Anduva.
His strong performances at Miranda de Ebro, where he scored six goals, led to offers, three from Spanish La Liga clubs and two from French clubs (Nantes and Strasbourg). But Joel Roca, a Girona fan since childhood, whose dreams are to win titles at Montilivi and play for international football, wanted to return to Girona, and both the sporting director, Quique Cárcel, and Míchel also called for his return. In a squad lacking in relevant youth players and, for now, new faces, the Camprodon native has become one of the biggest draws for the Girona faithful.
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