Christian Sanchez

Christian Joel — Christian Joel Sánchez Leal in full — grew up in the Sporting Gijón youth ranks after leaving Havana, and it was in Cádiz that he made his mark: on 8 June 2019 he kept a clean sheet on his first-team debut, a 1-0 win over Cádiz CF in Segunda División. Before that he had spent four years with Sporting Gijón B, racking up 45 appearances, and he went on to make 26 appearances for the senior side in total.

His development continued away from Gijón. A loan to AEK Larnaca in Cyprus for the 2021-2022 season brought 16 appearances and a Cypriot First Division title. He returned to Sporting Gijón in the summer of 2022 before going out on loan again, this time to Celta Fortuna, where he made 25 appearances in Primera Federación.

In February 2023 he moved up to train with Celta Vigo's first team, sitting on the bench for matches against Real Betis and Atlético de Madrid when the club's senior goalkeepers were unavailable through injury, though he did not add a LaLiga appearance to his record. He returned to Sporting Gijón for the following season. His contract at Gijón expired in the summer of 2026, and he then signed a one-year deal with União de Leiria in Portugal on a free transfer.

He is left-footed and stands 193 cm tall. He has been mentioned as a possible option for Cuba's national side since 2019, though no senior cap has followed.