Francisco Pavón

For the Honduran footballer, see Francisco Antonio Pavón.

Paco Pavón

Pavón in action with Zaragoza
Personal information
Full name	Francisco Pavón Barahona
Date of birth	9 January 1980 (1980-01-09)
Place of birth	Madrid, Spain
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Playing position	Centre back
Club information
Current club	Free agent
Youth career
	Real Madrid
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1998–2000	Real Madrid C
2000–2001	Real Madrid B	38	(1)
2001–2007	Real Madrid	106	(1)
2007–2010	Zaragoza	43	(5)
2010–2011	Arles-Avignon	26	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 1 June 2011. † Appearances (Goals).

This name uses Spanish naming customs; the first or paternal family name is Pavón and the second or maternal family name is Barahona.

Francisco "Paco" Pavón Barahona (born 9 January 1980) is a Spanish footballer who plays as a central defender.

His name became associated with the Los Galácticos policy when Real Madrid – where he spent most of his professional career – president Florentino Pérez promised to build a team full of Zidanes and Pavones – expensive high profile recruits like Zinedine Zidane and youth team graduates like Pavón.

Football career

Born in Madrid, Pavón progressed through the ranks at Real Madrid, starting with the junior side Tendillo, until he established himself with the B side. He then made his La Liga debut against Athletic de Bilbao at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, on 6 October 2001. Shortly after that 2–0 win, he would seal a seven-year deal with the club, going on to make a further 27 league appearances during the season, and adding the campaign's UEFA Champions League.

In the subsequent two seasons, Pavón played an additional 51 league contests, scoring a rare goal on 8 May 2004, in a 2–3 home loss to RCD Mallorca. His role would diminish drastically onwards, as the defender made no competitive appearances whatsoever during 2006–07.

On 25 April 2007, media speculation indicated that Pavón was close to agreeing a four-year deal with Premier League club Bolton Wanderers, rejoining former teammate Iván Campo, but nothing came of it. He eventually put pen-to-paper a four-year deal with Real Zaragoza on July, after his release from Real Madrid, but appeared in just eight league games through 2007–08, as the Aragon side was relegated.

In 2008–09's Segunda División, Pavón netted his first goal for Zaragoza, in a 2–1 home win over Real Murcia, also relegated the previous season; he contributed much more consistently as the team immediately promoted.

In the 2009–10 season, Pavón was only third or fourth-choice stopper, but still managed to score twice as Zaragoza maintained its division status. In the very last minute of the 2010 summer transfer window, he signed with AC Arles-Avignon, reuniting with former Real Madrid teammate Álvaro Mejía.

In November 2011, Pavón went on trial with West Ham United in the Football League Championship, but nothing came of it.

Honours

• Real Madrid:
  • UEFA Champions League: 2001–02
  • Intercontinental Cup: 2002
  • UEFA Super Cup: 2002
  • Spanish League: 2002–03, 2006–07
  • Spanish Supercup: 2003

External links

• Stats at Liga de Fútbol Profesional (Spanish)
• BDFutbol profile