Like Father, Like Son: Cristiano Pernía Joins Getafe's Academy to Follow in His Dad's Legendary Footsteps
Cristiano Pernía, son of Getafe cult hero Mariano, has joined the club's youth setup after spells at Boca Juniors and Huracán. No pressure, son.
Getafe have a new Pernía on the books — and if the name rings a bell, it absolutely should.
The son also rises
Cristiano Pernía, 18-year-old son of azulón legend Mariano Andrés Pernía, has officially signed for Getafe’s youth academy and has already received his federation licence. He’s expected to make his debut soon under Mario Otero in the División de Honor Juvenil. Not a bad place to start trying to carve out your own identity when your old man is basically a deity in this part of south Madrid.
Cristiano arrives with a decent pedigree of his own, mind you:
- Four seasons at Boca Juniors — one of the most prestigious youth academies in South America
- Most recently at Huracán before making the move to Spain
- He plays as a right back — so no, he didn’t inherit his dad’s position on the left flank
The weight of a legend
Here’s the thing — following Mariano Pernía at Getafe is no easy task. The bloke is genuinely one of the most beloved players ever to pull on that blue shirt. A left back who somehow turned himself into a goals machine, he banged in eleven goals in his second season at the Coliseum — ten of them in LaLiga. For a defender. Mental.
And they weren’t tap-ins either. There was a stunning volley against Barcelona that did the rounds globally, and a screamer against Espanyol that had the Getafe faithful absolutely losing their nut. He also holds the distinction of being the club’s first player to be called up to the Spanish national team — remarkable for a lad who started his career in Argentina.
Fitting right in
Cristiano isn’t alone in being a famous footballing son at Getafe’s La Base setup. He joins the likes of:
- Hugo Solozabal
- Martín Cuellar (who he occasionally plays alongside)
- Julen Jon Guerrero
All of them carrying recognisable surnames and trying to write their own chapters at a club with a proper community feel.
Look, nobody’s expecting Cristiano to immediately replicate what his dad did — that’d be a tall order for anyone. But the fact he’s trained at Boca, moved through Huracán, and now rocked up at Getafe at 18 suggests there’s genuine ambition there. The Coliseum crowd will be watching with a warm eye from day one, purely on surname alone. The rest is up to him.