Rayo Vallecano captain Izi Palazon summed up the entire mood of Vallecas with some post-match tears in Leipzig.
Rayo lost 1-0 to Crystal Palace in the Conference League final – their first ever final in over a century.
It was a sad end to an incredible season, but one full of pride, which the ‘Bald Beckham’ struggled to articulate.
“I’m a little sad…” he began. However, and quite rightly, Sergio Sánchez, a Movistar+ reporter, decided to stop the interview due to the tears.
Later, Palazon returned to the spot and was able to give his thoughts.
“We have to appreciate what we’ve done this season,” he said.
“For the team, for the fans, we wanted to put the finishing touch on it, but that’s football.
“We’ll get back up and come back for these people who have made the effort to come here. Now everyone knows us. We’ll go for it next year.
“Palace was very organised, they command a lot of respect, we weren’t clinical. We have to accept the defeat. We have to enjoy it, we’re sad today, but we have to enjoy it.”
Teammate Óscar Valentín added: “The team gave it their all. We weren’t comfortable today.
“It was a very tough and physical team. We enjoyed the whole process. Today’s lead-up. All these days. Reaching the final is a gift, but the team is gutted.”
Óscar Trejo said: “It hurts terribly, because we did everything.
“The sacrifice of our people. I hope they are as proud as I am. I saw my teammates give their all.
“Emotions are hard to handle, but with hard work and love, you can reach this point.”
Soon after, head coach Inigo Perez gave his thoughts ahead of a likely departure to Villarreal.
“We’ve been close to it and fallen defeated,” he said. “The impact in the first few hours is about losing or winning.
“What breaks you inside is seeing people cry, seeing people trying to lift your spirits. That’s really what ends up destroying you inside.
“The emotional component weighed heavily, but I wouldn’t want to attribute it solely to that. I think they were tactically superior. We never had the feeling that we could win the game and secure the victory.
“The first half was tentative. Neither team wanted to make a mistake. The goal came from an isolated play at the start of the second half, and they already had a certain advantage. That blow left us shaken, and we had five very dangerous minutes. After that, we recovered, but without brilliance.”
Club president Martín Presa added: “I’m proud to have been here today.
“It’s a real shame for all the people who came and for how close they were. The goal was a lucky break, and that’s infuriating. But we have to be proud. The season has been brilliant.
“We stayed in the First Division and had a chance to win this competition until the very last minute. We felt the affection of Vallecas and all of Spain.
“I also want to thank the Federation, LaLiga, Tebas, the Community of Madrid, and the Government. Even the King called us to offer his encouragement.
“Today we should have played our best match of the season, and we didn’t. Hopefully, we can reach another final and win it. That’s the goal. We’ve grown, and we have to keep going. From today on, we have a score to settle and the obligation to win a final.”
Finally, Spanish journalist Manu Carreño summed up the mood of Spain.
“For one night I’m going to contradict the great Luis Aragonés, who said that nobody remembers the runner-up,” he began.
“I think we’re all going to remember this runner-up because it’s taken Rayo 102 years, which is a long time, to reach a European final.
“It’s true that it hasn’t been the Rayo we’ve enjoyed all season, with initiative, verticality, that scares, that threatens… in the end, playing your first European final makes you have something different in your head than what you normally have.
“We’ll remember for a long time the 11,000 fans who were in Leipzig, and how Vallecas felt tonight. We’ll remember it for a long time.
“I don’t know if they’ll ever play in another European final or how long it will be before they do, but this time we’ll remember the runner-up for a long time because Rayo Vallecano played brilliantly.”
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