Pérez-Payá, to Madrid with an athletic car

With Cristiano in all the discussions about his dealings with Atleti, Pérez Payá comes to mind, who provoked them worse many years ago when he left the Metropolitano to go to Chamartín… in a luxurious car recently given by the Atlético president.

José Luis Pérez Payá was born into a soccer cradle.

His father, Ángel Pérez Soler, was the great hero of Alcoyano: founder, player, coach and president of the club when it appeared in the First Division, in 45-46.

The boy, José Luis, played well.

He was a striker with a good plant, mobility and a goal.

In 1948 he was Spanish amateur champion with Serpis, something like the Alcoyano subsidiary, beating Indauchu 4-0 at the Metropolitano.

That date was as celebrated in Alcoy as the promotion.

By then he was playing for Barakaldo, in the Second Division.

He had a fan record, which allowed him to take those liberties.

If he was in the North, it was because his father had sent him to the University of Deusto to study Law and Business.

Already licensed, he returned home and joined Alcoyano in 49-50, in the Second Division, although he did not finish the season, because in the middle of it he went to Real, already in the First Division, as a reinforcement on the fly to avoid the decline.

He debuted with two goals against Madrid in Chamartín.

La Real was saved and he signed for Atlético de Madrid.

He wanted to prepare civil service oppositions and it was good for him to live in Madrid.

In addition, Atleti was the league champion, with Helenio Herrera as coach.

So he settled in the CEU, very close to the old Metropolitano, which he could walk to.

Always as an 'amateur', which allowed him to skip some training or friendly during the week.

He only paid the bonuses: 300 pesetas for a win at home or draw away and 500 for a win away.

He was the axis of the famous 'glass forward', Juncosa, Ben Barek, Pérez Payá, Carlsson and Escuredo.

(Heir to the 'silk': Juncosa, Vidal, Silva, Campos and Escuredo).

In his first season he won the League, with 14 goals, a number he repeated in his second, in which he won the Eva Perón Trophy.

In the third he took out the opposition at the cost of playing a little less.

With a place in the State assured, he thought that the time had come to earn money with football and asked for a professional contract.

But the president, Benítez de Lugo, Marquis of Florida, did not consider it, he put off and gave him a car thinking that it would satisfy him.

A car was not a small thing in the summer of 1953. SEAT had yet to release the first car from it, they were all imported and very few people had access to one.

But the player's father spoke with Bernabéu, of whom he was a friend of the friction in the box and the inclination that the white patriarch had for everything from Alicante.

They agreed and he signed for four years (then he was 25) as a professional with Madrid.

He arrived at Madrid the same season as Gento and Di Stéfano.

The athletic fans were outraged because he did not return the car, which he considered a fair reward for his performance during those years.

That, in turn, was a reason for joke in the mouth of the Madridistas and caused more than one fight in bars.

Florida, of which Helenio Herrera wrote in his memoirs that he "was such a rich man that he thought he was intelligent", was snubbed.

Pérez Payá made his debut the same day as Gento, against Osasuna.

He alternated with Olsen and Molowny at midfielder and occasionally wore number nine, his number at Atlético, displacing Di Stéfano to left midfielder.

(There are some photos of Di Stéfano playing with the 10, from that year).

He scored his goals and was even capped twice at that time of very few national team matches.

He won his first two leagues as a madridista and in the third season he was in the team's debut in the European Cup, at Servette.

But he wouldn't get to complete his contract.

Rial arrived, Mateos and Marsal left the quarry, so that the interior position became expensive.

Di Stéfano was immovable and indefatigable.

They also offered him an important position: Provincial Labor Delegate in Castellón, which gave a great boost to his career in the administration.

He was 28 years old and there he left with the car from Florida.

He was right, because with only 34 he would return to Madrid as Deputy Director General of the Labor Inspection, a load.

He had a great career in the State and over the years he would return to soccer as president of the Federation.

He would make Kubala manager.

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