Ángel Pajuelo

Ángel Pajuelo
Personal information
Full name Ángel Pajuelo Zazo
Date of birth (1987-08-01) 1 August 1987
Place of birth Villanueva de la Serena, Spain
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Villanovense
Number 6
Youth career
Villanovense
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2003– Villanovense 370+ (10+)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 5 May 2025

Ángel Pajuelo Zazo (born 1 August 1987)[1] is a Spanish footballer who plays as a midfielder for Tercera Federación club Villanovense. From his debut on 12 October 2003, he has spent his entire senior career at Villanovense and made over 500 appearances across all competitions.

Career

Born in Villanueva de la Serena in the Province of Badajoz, Pajuelo was an academy player for hometown club CF Villanovense.[2] He made his debut aged 16 on 12 October 2003 as a last-minute substitute in a 3–0 home loss to Vecindario in the third-tier Segunda División B. He made two more appearances off the bench as the team were relegated to the Tercera División.[3] Pajuelo combined his football career with working as an insurance agent.[4]

In October 2015, before facing Barcelona in the last 32 of the Copa del Rey, Pajuelo told national newspaper El Mundo "I don't want to leave [Villanovense], it's a feeling. I feel comfortable, it's my town, I defend my team. Every footballer wants something more, but for me to leave Villanovense, it has to be to something bigger. But there's no place like home".[5] In the first leg on 28 October, he captained the club to a goalless draw against the La Liga opponents;[6] his team lost the second leg 6–1 at the Camp Nou.[4]

In 2016–17, Pajuelo played 33 games including the playoffs and scored once, as Villanovense made the semi-finals for promotion to the Segunda División.[7] Following the elimination by Racing de Santander, he extended his contract.[7]

Villanovense faced a top-flight opponent again in the last 32 of the Copa del Rey in 2018–19, namely Sevilla. Pajuelo's side taunted their visitors with a poster with the slogan "You have five [UEFA Europa League titles] but we have [Pajuelo wearing number] six".[8] In the first leg on 1 November, he missed an open goal with a header in a goalless draw;[9] Sevilla won the second leg at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán Stadium with a goal by André Silva.[10]

Having not scored a goal in the third division since November 2018, 35-year-old Pajuelo netted in two consecutive games in January 2023, as his team won their first three games of the calendar year.[2] In June, approaching two decades since his debut, he extended his contract for another year.[11]

On 10 March 2024, Pajuelo played his 500th game for his club, a 1–0 home loss to fellow Extremadurans Navalcarnero.[12] He renewed his contract in June 2025, with the team having been relegated to the fifth-tier Tercera Federación after losing a playoff to Real Madrid C.[13] The city council in Villanueva de la Serena unanimously awarded Pajuelo its Sirena de Oro award on 30 January 2026, describing him as a "sign of sporting identity".[14]

References

  1. ^ @cfvillanovense (1 August 2024). "Hoy debería ser día de fiesta local en Villanueva. Hoy cumple años don Ángel Pajuelo Zazo.🎂🙌🏻 FELICIDADES CAPITÁN 💚" [Today should be a local festival in Villanueva. Today is the birthday of the esteemed Ángel Pajuelo Zazo.🎂🙌🏻 CONGRATULATIONS CAPTAIN 💚] (Tweet) (in Spanish) – via X (formerly Twitter).
  2. ^ a b Domeque, Estrella (24 January 2023). "«Pajuelo es el mejor capitán que puede tener el Villanovense»" ["Pajuelo is the best captain that Villanovense could have"]. Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  3. ^ "Pajuelo: Matches played 2003-04". BDFutbol. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  4. ^ a b Carrasco, Eloy (2 December 2015). "Barcelona 6 - Villanovense 1". El Periódico Extremadura (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  5. ^ Corpas, André (28 October 2015). "Ángel Pajuelo, capitán del Villanovense: 'Esto es un sentimiento'" [Ángel Pajuelo, Villanovense captain: 'It is a feeling']. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  6. ^ "Pajuelo: "El ritmo fue muy alto; es la diferencia entre Primera y Segunda B"" [Pajuelo: "The rhythm was very high; that is the difference between Primera and Segunda B"]. Sport (in Spanish). 28 October 2015. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  7. ^ a b Ramos, Nacho (26 June 2017). "El Villanovense renueva a su eterno capitán" [Villanovense renew their enternal captain] (in Spanish). Extremadura 7 Días. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  8. ^ Lagos, Daniel (30 October 2018). "Pajuelo, el arma del Villanovense que desafía las Uefas del Sevilla" [Pajuelo, Villanovense's weapon who challenges Sevilla's UEFA Europa League titles]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  9. ^ "El Sevilla no puede con el Villanovense y se jugará todo en la vuelta" [Sevilla could not deal with Villanovense and everything will be to play for in the second leg]. El Espanol (in Spanish). 1 November 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  10. ^ "André Silva clasifica al Sevilla tras ganar al Villanovense" [André Silva qualifies Sevilla after beating Villanovense]. El Español (in Spanish). 5 December 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  11. ^ Cortés, Juan María (3 June 2023). "Ángel Pajuelo, 20 años al servicio del Villanovense" [Ángel Pajuelo, 20 years in service of Villanovense] (in Spanish). Canal Extremadura. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  12. ^ Domenque, Estrella (11 March 2024). "Pajuelo: «El Villanovense es mi vida y estoy orgulloso de vestir esta camiseta»" [Pajuelo: "Villanovense is my life and I am proud to wear this shirt"]. Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  13. ^ Domeque, Estrella (19 June 2025). "El Villanovense empieza su nuevo proyecto con caras conocidas" [Villanovense begin their new project with recognised faces]. Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  14. ^ "Villanueva distingue con la Sirena de Oro a Ángel Pajuelo, Scouts y la comisión lectora del premio Felipe Trigo" [Villanueva awards the Sirena de Oro to Ángel Pajuelo, Scouts and the reading commission of the Felipe Trigo prize] (in Spanish). Cadena COPE. 30 January 2026. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
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