The story of Thomas Christiansen Tarín (Hadsund, 1973) It is full of twists and turns. The current Panama coach He saw how, as a child, his father cut short his signing for Real Madrid. “If you’re so good at 15, you’ll be so good at 18”his father suggested to him to convince him that finished his studies in Denmark.
That’s how it was. When he came of age He traveled on a trial basis to a tribute to Pep Guardiola in Santpedor and ended up signing for Barcelona. What is really striking is that being a Barça B player, without having debuted in First Division, Javier Clemente will summon him with the absolute spanish national team.
Thomas Christiansen, with Spain.
He had to choose between Spain and Denmark
“At first I thought it was a joke. The truth is that it is not very normal for a Second Division player to be called up.but I will be very grateful to Clemente if he gives me the opportunity. It has been easier to get to the national team than to the Barcelona first team“acknowledged the attacker, who was also sought by Denmark. “My greatest wish was to participate with Spain. It is the most any Spanish player can aspire to,” he acknowledged. Christiansenof a Danish father and a Spanish mother.
At first I thought it was a joke. It has been easier to get to the national team than to the Barcelona first team
“I saw him when he played with the under 21 team and he was good, I liked it. The conditions it has cannot be seen. No player looks like him, he is different. And he is 19 years old,” the Basque coach justified. “It is surprising that a Second Division player goes to the senior team, which does not mean that this player does not have quality. It is very good that Clemente is betting on young people,” he stressed. Pep Guardiola.
The conditions it has cannot be seen. No player looks like him, he is different
Clemente not only called him. He gave him the alternative in a friendly against Mexico (1-1) disputed in the Insular stadium he January 27, 1993. He thus became the nationalized number 25 in playing with Spain and in the first debut with the absolute playing in Second… from Ignacio Zoco (1961). “For the premiere, victory is always better, but I am very happy,” he assured.
This is how we tell the story of Thomas Christiansen’s debut with Spain.
He debuted with Spain with a back-heeled goal
One month later, in World Cup qualifying matchthe Spanish-Danish attacker He made his debut as a scorer in the 5-0 win over Lithuania with a goal… from a backheel! “I’m very happy to have scored, but I was content with having played a few minutes. It wasn’t a coincidence. He had already scored the same goal with Barça B”, he stated.
The chronicle of Spain-Lithuania with a goal from Christiansen.
Christiansen was the ‘fashionable player’. “The majority of teams have approached us: Atlético, Tenerife, Sporting, Oviedo, Celta, Racing, Albacete and Osasuna They have asked us for information. Except for Real Madrid, they have been almost all LaLiga teams“he remarked Joan Gaspart.
“I want to succeed at Barcelona”he insisted Panama coachwho only played two games with the first team… and it would not be international again. He began a pilgrimage that took him to ‘parade’ through Sporting, Osasuna, Racing, Oviedo, Villarreal, Terrassa, Panionios, Herfolge…
Thomas Christiansen, in a preseason with Barcelona.
“I have been through difficult times. The worst was when I ended my contract with Villarreal. I was left stranded, with no team to go to, and I ended up playing in 2nd B because I had no offers. At that time I even considered leaving and starting a business in Barcelona, but my wife encouraged me to keep going.. Thank goodness I listened to her,” he declared to MARCA as a player of the Bochum.
I have been through difficult times. I even considered leaving and starting a business in Barcelona, but my wife encouraged me. Thank goodness I listened to her.
In the Bundesliga he took off. In fact, it was proclaimed ‘Pichichi’ with 21 goalsnext to Giovane Elberin the 2002-03: “It’s my best moment as a footballer. Who wouldn’t like to return, but If being an international player playing in the Spanish League is already complicated, being abroad is much more so, because it is more difficult for the coach to follow your steps. “I would have to score 30 or 40 goals to achieve it.”
It was his jump to the bench that brought him back to national team football. He won two runners-up finishes with AEK Larnaca -He was elected best coach of Cyprus on both occasions-, won a League with APOEL and directed Leeds and Union Saint-Gilloise before disembarking Panama in the middle of the COVID pandemic! on August 10, 2020.
Thomas Christiansen, during his time at APOEL.
“The few flights that there were were for humanitarian aid, or to bring home Panamanians who were abroad. The Federation wanted me in the country and the only possibility was to arrive on a cargo plane. In Amsterdam I got on one where there were only 16 passengers“, he recalls in ‘The Country’.
“The goal is to try to get back into the World Cup”he announced upon arrival Christiansenwho, curiously, spent part of his childhood in Panama due to his father’s work. He has fulfilled. In spades. was not in Qatar 2022but has obtained the passport for 2026 after taking the ‘canaleros’ to the final of the Gold Cup (2023) and the CONCACAF Nations League (2024-25).
Along the way he has also ousted to ‘Bolillo’ Gómez (72) like the coach with most games in the history of Panama: he has already accumulated 92 games. “I feel super united to the country, very grateful for the love we have received. If things are going well and you feel comfortable, it is a reason to stay. The link is such that we are processing the Panamanian passport. Many already say that we are Panamanian, but in addition to being Panamanian in words, we want to be Panamanian in spirit and on paper,” he pointed out to FIFA.com.
I feel super united to the country. Many say that we are Panamanians, but, in addition to being Panamanian by mouth, we want to be Panamanian by paper.
His goal now, after losing to Ghana (1-0) in the 95th minute in the debutis help Panama to get the first points in its history in a World Cup. awaits you Croatia. “I have discussed it with the coaching staff, with the players, and we are convinced that we can win. I see the group very animated, wanting to get rid of that small thorn that stuck in us against Ghana, where we deserved much more,” he emphasizes. Christiansen. Its history, of course, is well worth it.
