| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Francisco Pavón Barahona | ||
| Date of birth | 9 January 1980 | ||
| 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). |
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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.[1]
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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 Bernabéu, on 6 October 2001. Shortly after that 2–0 win, he would seal a seven-year deal with the club,[2] 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.[3] 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,[4] 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.[5][6] 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.
West Ham United