A now former Real Madrid star has announced his disappointing departure from the club via social media.
MARCA described Paulo Iago as Madrid’s Lamine Yamal in its La Fabrica academy. Unlike the FC Barcelona prodigy, however, who is similarly represented by Jorge Mendes, Paulo Iago and his camp have decided that the midfielder would be better off continuing his progress over the border at Sporting CP in Lisbon.
Paulo Iago announced his departure from the Spanish capital with an emotional farewell video on Instagram, saying that he was “leaving at the age of 17 with a certain disappointment” for not seeing his dream of debuting with the first team at the Bernabeu come true.
“It was hard to make this decision, and it hurts me a lot to leave. The reasons are what they are and I’m keeping them to myself. I will speak clearly when the time comes,” he added.
AS reported back in mid-July that Paulo Iago had decided to leave the club he joined as a six-year-old, amid falling out of favour with U18s coach Alvaro Arbeloa, who was previously one of his main backers.
After previously being talked about as one of the biggest pearls shining in La Fabrica, who had scored more than 200 goals there, Paulo Iago found himself on the outside looking in upon returning from an unflattering U17 World Cup campaign with Spain in Indonesia last year.
In the summer of 2024, he has opted to up sticks to Portugal and noted other compatriots such as Pedro Porro and Antonio Adan who similarly took the plunge prior to winning “many titles at Sporting” during his presentation.
“Hopefully I can also win many trophies like them,” the youngster added, also saying that he was “very happy to sign for Sporting CP because it is a club that has already produced great players such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Luis Figo”.
“The club invests a lot in training and young people, that motivates me,” he further stated.
Now that his signing has been confirmed, Paulo Iago will reportedly join Sporting’s B reserve team and look to make his way into its senior equivalent which is Portugal’s defending league champion.
