Not many of them believed it. After a 2022/2023 season marked by a failed adventure at Sevilla FC then half a season of unemployment, Isco arrived at neighbors Betis this summer. A risky gamble attempted by the Andalusian team, but which ultimately paid off very quickly. Under the orders of Manuel Pellegrini, the former Real Madrid player has found all the talent and class that we had seen in Malaga – where the Chilean was his coach – and among the Merengues. A renaissance that will delight Betis fans but also La Liga fans.
And obviously, many expected to find him in Luis de la Fuente’s list for La Roja’s matches against Cyprus and Georgia, counting for qualifications for the next Euro. A competition for which the Iberian nation is already qualified; another reason which could have pushed the coach to carry out some tests by calling up less usual players. However, he chose to call players like Rodrigo Riquelme or Aleix Garcia, brilliant at Atlético and Girona, rather than Isco.
Betis want to do everything to keep him
Very quickly, on social networks, many La Roja fans attacked the coach, not understanding Isco’s absence. ” It’s simple. There are times when I feel like I’m being unfair. There are successful players, who are very good… But at the same time, I am also fair to those who are there. I have more successful players than I can call. Making a list is very complex”, defended De la Fuente. In the media, reactions were also quite strong. “There is no reason for De La Fuente to ignore Isco, who is the best attacking midfielder in La Liga”we can read in Marca. El Chiringuito also described Isco as “fittest Spanish player”. As a reminder, Isco has not played for the selection since… 2019!
It has been a while since a player had so much unanimous support in his favor, and even Sergio Ramos, back at a more than acceptable level with Sevilla, is not as acclaimed by the fans. At the same time, Marca tells us that Betis is already discussing with the player’s entourage to extend the contract which binds the two parties. Isco signed until 2025 (contract dependent on a certain number of matches played), but the Sevillian club already wants to extend this lease to 2026, with, above all, better financial conditions for the player. In order to prevent other clubs from knocking on the door as well, while there had recently been talk of interest from Inter…
