For a tournament that has a history of highlighting young talent — like Fernando Torres, captain of Atlético Madrid at the age of 19, Ansu Fatiyoungest Champions League goalscorer at 16, and Iker Casillas was about the same age when he was kicked out of school to travel with Real Madrid on duty in the Champions League — LaLiga it’s too late to enjoy the thrilling, sublime talent that is Rayo Vallecano‘S Isi . Palace.
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Partly because this bottle rocket, both small and dangerous, is busy playing a farmer picking peaches, apples and apricots while his colleagues have won titles, making millions. la and became familiar names.
He looks British, like so many people who own villas or rent apartments in the Murcia region, where many golf courses, sunlit, and where he was born. About 5 foot-7 tall if he wears longer boots, boasts a shaved head and a warrior attitude, easily looks a little blush if it’s a scorching hot day or if he’s playing in the middle of one of his shows for Rayo where he appeared to do the work of three men — those elements might make up your first impression of “Isinho.”
When you watch, though? It is a treatment.
For all his efficiency and importance to the bijou Madrid club from the noisy and working-class neighborhood of Vallecas, Isi (Isaac) Palazon is a real pleasure. His gifted left foot is elegant and precise in distribution, but also powerful and explosive as he unleashes one of those treacherous shots towards goal that, frankly, not really feasible for such a compact player.
Even this season, Palazon has 5 goals and 3 assists, giving him the best creative stat of his career, but with Rayo, he is so much more. A fierce tackler and the nerve center through which much of the team’s play must flow if they are to attack well, he demonstrates his leadership and is an inspirational icon for the team. extremely loyal and loud fans: he has a lot of things. The epitome of “the captain doesn’t wear the captain’s armband”.
SpainThe national team has a new coach, Luis de la Fuente, who has made it clear that he sees dozens or more players currently as national team candidates under his supervision. that. la roja. He is speaking both during their Euro ’24 qualifying campaign against the likes of Norway and Scotland, and when the Nations League 2021 runners-up face Italy in the semi-finals of this year’s tournament in June. Palazon had to engage in that conversation, all of which surprised one so much that just a few years ago, he had to resort to fruit-picking under the intense heat of the Murcia sun, making his back sore and full of insects just to get by.
As talented, impressive and important as the likable 28-year-old is at the moment, it’s worth noting that he didn’t enter the world of professional football fully until 2019 and made his LaLiga debut at the age of 28. 26. On that day, Rayo lost 3-0 at Sevillewith the Palazon lasting about an hour.
Perhaps the most heartwarming part of all of this, besides the fact that he’s one of those players who deserve to buy a match ticket, turn on your television or radio to watch his performances, is that The fact that he was planned to become a football royal at the age of 13, only to suffer one painful defeat after another to reach his current state of excellence.
We all love a redemption story, right?
Palazon is a talented kid who was kicked out of his local school and team to be fast tracked into the Real Madrid academy when he was a teenager. Once in Valdebebas, he beat around with Raul de Tomas, Gonzalo Melero and Jesé Rodriguez – who has almost 300 LaLiga matches between them compared to his half-century of La Liga matches – but was released, rather brutally, before thriving in Villarreal The youth system ended up just being told there that they didn’t want him either.
Thus returned home, tail temporarily between his legs. Thus, the hard work of midday sunshine, skillfully separating the peaches from the branches without crushing the precious fruit – a “life experience” that completely changed him and inspired his attitude.” give your best every day” that he has now.
His mantra is: “I look forward to every game, no matter who or where we play. Win, lose or draw, I love every moment. I used to hate losing: it made me always I feel uncomfortable, but it’s much less painful right now because I’m aware of how lucky I am to be playing at the highest level.”
Although being selected, then rejected by Madrid, remains a scar to Palazon, it is still a sign of the machine’s talent as a child. As he told his local newspaper: “I remember like it was yesterday. My dad shook me up and told me to pack up. I had a week of probation in Madrid!
“I have to admit that it was hard for me to be away from home. The first few months were difficult, and I cried tears of tears every time family or friends came to visit. But I realized that I had to be strong. mentally stronger,” I said. How lucky I am myself that most of the kids were willing to help in my situation and it worked. I’ve adapted and things have gotten better, although deep down I’m still very homesick.”
It is not uncommon to find that, when Madrid realized Isi was not for them, the outcome was uncompromising. Unannounced, unprepared: he was called into the office and asked to pack up. Just a kid, humiliated, traumatized and with no one around to take him home hundreds of miles to tiny Cieza (population 35,000) in Murcia. He still calls the process “devastating”.
Then to Villarreal’s academy for three and a half years. He admitted: “Those were the best years of my life. Villarreal’s football philosophy meant that I made tactical and technical leaps, but they also let me go.
“At 19, I felt like the end of the world. You start questioning everything: ‘Is there any reason to go on with this? Can I even play football?’ That self-doubt gnaws at you.”
Returning home once more, the child with a reputation for fame had, in the eyes of the skeptical locals, failed. Out of business and out of business, he asked a friend if he could work with him in the local fruit picking industry. However, Isi didn’t really understand how brutal or helpful this experience would prove to be.
He said: “I was used to the good salary in Villarreal and all of a sudden, I didn’t have a dime left. A friend of mine runs a peach farm, so I asked him if he was. Can you take me as a manager worker. I spent the morning picking peaches and the afternoon training. It’s the kind of experience that teaches you a little bit of humility. I said to myself: ‘Damn it. , just a few weeks ago you were playing in one of the best youth teams in Spain and now look at you!’
“There’s no disrespect to anyone who works in agriculture, but it opened up a whole other world for me. At Villarreal, I existed in a bubble of privilege and financial security. unlike the real world, I now work side by side on the side of people who live by mouth, breaking their backs just to make it to the weekend.
“I still keep in touch with so many of them and I will never forget those days! It was a difficult lesson, but one that completely changed me. I became focused and determined. a lot more. If I had to hit the ground every day and run faster than I’ve run in the past, that’s what I would do.”
And that’s what made him stand out.
When Palazon joined Rayo in January 2020, they were 12th in the second division. Since then, he has scored in the promotion playoffs, Los Franjirrojos (“Red Lightning”) sat near the European qualifiers (they hadn’t competed in UEFA competitions for 22 years) and the “Isi Factor” was key to Rayo’s defeat. Sport ClubReal Madrid, Seville, Valencia and Barcelona (twice) in LaLiga, and in that reached the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey. A big impact for this late bloomer.
To complete this comeback story, with a central role in the loss to Real Madrid (the team that rejected him) on the eve of the World Cup, it was necessary to win the trophy, wear for Spain, a big win in European football — all of which would be rich rewards for this talented little player. If you haven’t seen his show and this is the first time the name Isi Palazon crosses your path, do yourself a favor: Watch the old fruit farmer just reach football maturity. .
