Real Betis returned to the European spots this weekend following a 2-0 home win to 10-man Mallorca, and one player who has been influential to the Andalusian team’s recent success is former Real Madrid star Isco.
Following a spell as a free agent and having not played one minute of professional football for over 9 months, Isco joined Los Verdiblancos in July and has now picked up 8 MOTM awards from 12 La Liga matches. Since linking back up with former Malaga manager Manuel Pellegrini, Isco has provided 2 goals and 2 assists and ranks high on the La Liga charts for the number of key passes played across the whole league. The 31-year-old is starting to return to the form which saw him become a standout player for Real Madrid, scoring 53 goals and providing 57 assists in a nine-year spell with Los Blancos.
The midfielder began his career at Valencia and Malaga before his move to Real Madrid in which the Spaniard won five Champions League titles and three La Liga titles. Following this, Isco joined Sevilla where he made 12 appearances. Unfortunately for the Spaniard, the move didn’t work out and the two parties agreed to terminate this contract during the pause for the 2022 World Cup held in Qatar.
Following the unsuccessful move, Isco admitted to having difficulty with his mental health, recently opening up in an interview with DAZN. He said, “I went through some difficult moments. In the end, I decided to stop for a while because I needed to. I needed to recycle myself mentally. I have had help, with family support and psychological support. In the end, mental health is very important, and we have to give it more awareness. Now, I am feeling good. The truth is that I’m very happy to be at a club like Real Betis. The welcome from fans, teammates and the coach has been very good and the truth is that I feel very happy.”
The re-emerging star is now focused on guiding Real Betis back to the European spots and bettering his teams finish of sixth from last season.
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