Shirley Cruz Traña (born 28 August 1985) is a Costa Rican professional footballer who last played as a midfielder for OL Reign of the National Women's Soccer League and the Costa Rica women's national football team. A creative midfielder who often acts as a deep-lying playmaker, Cruz is the second-ever female footballer from Costa Rica to play abroad when she joined Lyon in 2005. Early life Cruz was born in the capital city of San José and discovered and learned the sport of football from her seven brothers. Club career Cruz began her football career at CF Universidad in San Pedro, San José. Cruz made a name for herself following her performance at the 1999 edition of the Los Juegos Deportivos Nacionales de San Carlos, translated as the National Sporting Games of San Carlos. She later played for local clubs AD Goicoechea, CS Desamparados, and UCEM Alajuela. With Alajuela, Cruz won three league titles and also earned the top scorer award once. Due to her performances locally, she signed with UCEM Alajuela and, in January 2006, moved abroad signing with Division 1 Féminine club Olympique Lyonnais. With her move, she became only the second Costa Rican women's football player, alongside Gabriela Trujillo, to play league football outside the country. Due to joining the club mid-season, Cruz appeared in only seven league matches scoring three goals. The 2006–07 season saw her playing time increase to 12 matches and also saw Lyon win their first league title under their new emblem. In the Challenge de France, Cruz was instrumental in helping Lyon reaching the final, where they lost to Montpellier on penalties scoring four goals in five appearances. The next season saw Lyon win the double following their league title and 3–0 victory over Paris Saint-Germain in the Challenge de France. Cruz appeared in 32 total matches, which included appearances in the UEFA Women's Cup. Cruz appeared in all 22 league matches (starting 20) during the 2008–09 season, which saw Lyon win their third straight title. She also appeared in all seven UEFA Women's Cup matches, where Lyon suffered elimination in the semi-finals after losing 2–4 on aggregate to German club FCR 2001 Duisburg. On 18 September 2009, Cruz, for the first time, signed with Lyon under professional terms (previously contracts were semi-professional) after agreeing to a two-year contract, which will keep her at the club until 2011. Cruz got off to