Cristóbal Parralo

Cristóbal Parralo Aguilera (born 21 August 1967), known simply as Cristóbal as a player, is a Spanish former professional footballer, currently a manager.

He played mainly as a right-back, but could also appear as a central defender.

Club career A product of Barcelona's youth ranks, Cristóbal was born in Priego de Córdoba, Andalusia, and he made his professional debut in 1987–88, being regularly used as the Catalans lifted that season's Copa del Rey. Subsequently, he represented Real Oviedo and Logroñés, where solid displays earned him a return to the Camp Nou.

Cristóbal was scarcely played in his second stint, and returned to Oviedo: in the subsequent nine campaigns (three plus six at Barça neighbours Espanyol) he rarely missed a game, and left Spain in 2001 with 454 La Liga appearances to his credit. Aged 34, he still moved to Paris Saint-Germain, having two respectable Ligue 1 seasons before retiring at the end of 2002–03.

Coaching career After a brief spell with former club Espanyol as director of football, Parralo joined countryman Quique Sánchez Flores at Benfica's coaching staff, for 2008–09. In early February 2009, he returned to his country and signed with lowly Peña Deportiva in the Segunda División B, being one of two managers in a relegation-ending season.

Parralo signed a one-year contract with Segunda División club Girona in June 2009. He was sacked on 26 October, with the team ranking penultimate with just seven points in nine matches.

On 24 October 2017, after Deportivo de La Coruña first-team manager Pepe Mel was fired due to poor results, Parralo moved from the reserve side and was appointed caretaker until the following 30 June. After only three months in charge, and after conceding 14 goals in the last three matches (which included 7–1 and 5–0 away drubbings against Real Madrid and Real Sociedad, respectively), he was relieved of his duties.

On 19 June 2018, Parralo was named coach of second division side Alcorcón. He extended his contract in October to last until the end of the 2019–20 campaign, but was ousted a year early when Fran Fernández was named in his place.

Parralo returned to the same league on 11 November 2019, replacing Iván Ania at a Racing de Santander side that had won one of 15 matches all season. He left by mutual consent the following 4 February, having won once in 11 games for the last-placed team.

On 10 February 2021, Parralo took over from the dismissed Emilio Larraz at the helm of third-tier Racing de Ferrol. He led the club back to the professional leagues after a 15-year absence in 2023, and renewed his contract at the end of the following season after finishing tenth.

Parralo was dismissed on 20 January 2025, with his side third-bottom in the table. He oversaw them in 164 matches, second only to Luis César Sampedro's 176. On 4 November, he replaced the latter at the helm of Gimnàstic de Tarragona in the Primera Federación, being sacked on 8 March 2026 after a 4–1 loss to Eldense.

Career statistics International goals Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition 1. 24 February 1993 Benito Villamarín, Seville, Spain 1–0 5–0 1994 World Cup qualification

Managerial statistics

+ Managerial record by team and tenureTeamNatFromToRecord Peña Deportiva 11 February 200925 June 2009 Girona 25 June 200926 October 2009 Deportivo B 27 June 201624 October 2017 Deportivo La Coruña 24 October 20174 February 2018 Alcorcón 19 June 20181 July 2019 Racing Santander 11 November 20194 February 2020 Racing Ferrol 10 February 202120 January 2025 Gimnàstic 4 November 20258 March 2026 Career total —

Honours Player Barcelona La Liga: 1991–92 Copa del Rey: 1987–88 European Cup: 1991–92 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1988–89

Espanyol Copa del Rey: 1999–2000

Paris Saint-Germain UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2001 Coupe de France runner-up: 2002–03