Pepelu

José Luis García Vayá (born 11 August 1998), commonly known as Pepelu, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for La Liga club Valencia.

Pepelu
Personal information
Full name José Luis García Vayá
Date of birth (1998-08-11) 11 August 1998
Place of birth Dénia, Spain
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s) Central midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Valencia
Number 18
Youth career
Dénia
2012–2014 Levante
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2014–2019 Levante B 90 (14)
2015–2023 Levante 72 (1)
2017–2018 → Hércules (loan) 30 (0)
2019–2020 → Tondela (loan) 33 (2)
2020–2021 → Vitória Guimarães (loan) 30 (1)
2023– Valencia 2 (1)
International career‡
2014–2015 Spain U17 15 (2)
2016 Spain U18 2 (0)
2016–2017 Spain U19 7 (0)
2016 Spain U20 6 (0)
2019 Spain U21 3 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 31 August 2023
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 8 July 2023
In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is García and the second or maternal family name is Vayá.

Club career

Early years

Born in Dénia, Alicante, Valencian Community, Pepelu joined Levante's youth setup in 2012, after starting it out at Dénia. On 24 June 2014, while still a youth, he renewed his contract until 2021,[1] and made his senior debut with the reserve team on 7 September, coming on as a half-time substitute in a Tercera División 1–1 home draw against Castellón.

Pepelu helped the B-team in their promotion to Segunda División B at the end of the season, and scored his first senior goal on 30 August 2015, netting his team's second in a 2–0 home win over Llosetense. On 15 December, he made his first team debut by replacing Juanfran in a 1–2 Copa del Rey away loss against Espanyol.[2]

Loan to Hércules

In August 2017, after Levante's B-side suffered relegation to the fourth tier, Pepelu was loaned to Hércules in the third division, for one season.[3] A regular starter, he contributed with 32 matches overall during the campaign.

Loan to Tondela

Upon returning from loan, Pepelu was a regular starter for the B-side also in the third division, scoring a career-best six goals during the 2018–19 campaign. On 26 July 2019, he moved abroad for the first time in his career after agreeing to a one-year loan deal with Primeira Liga side Tondela.[4]

Pepelu scored his first professional goal on 7 December 2019, netting the opener in a 3–2 away success over Famalicão. The following 26 July, he saved the club from relegation with a late penalty 2–1 winner at Moreirense on the final day.[5]

Loan to Vitória SC

On 8 September 2020, Pepelu remained in Portugal for a further campaign, after agreeing to a one-year loan deal with Vitória SC.[6] He was also a first-choice for the club, as they narrowly missed out a continental spot.

Breakthrough

Upon returning to Levante in July 2021, Pepelu made his La Liga debut on 11 September, replacing Pablo Martínez late into a 1–1 home draw against Rayo Vallecano. He established himself as a regular starter for the side under manager Alessio Lisci,[7] but was unable to prevent the club's relegation to Segunda División.

In June 2022, Pepelu signed a new ten-year contract with Levante running until the summer of 2032.[8] He scored his first goal for the club on 29 April 2023, netting the opener in a 2–0 home win over Deportivo Alavés.

Valencia

On 8 July 2023, Pepelu moved to cross-town rivals Valencia CF in the top tier, for €5 million. The player signed a five-year contract, with a release clause of €100 million.[9]

Career statistics

Club
As of match played 17 June 2023[10]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup[lower-alpha 1] League Cup[lower-alpha 2] Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Levante B 2015–16 Segunda División B 30 4 — — — — 30 4
2016–17 29 4 — — — 2[lower-alpha 3] 0 31 4
2018–19 31 6 — — — — 31 6
Total 90 14 — — — 2 0 92 14
Levante 2015–16 La Liga 0 0 1 0 — — — 1 0
2021–22 29 0 1 0 — — — 30 0
2022–23 Segunda División 43 1 4 0 — — — 47 1
Total 72 1 6 0 — — — 78 1
Hércules (loan) 2017–18 Segunda División B 30 0 2 0 — — — 32 0
Tondela (loan) 2019–20 Primeira Liga 33 2 0 0 1 0 — — 34 2
Vitória SC (loan) 2020–21 30 1 2 0 1 0 — — 33 1
Career Total 255 18 10 0 2 0 — 2 0 269 18
  1. Includes Copa del Rey and Taça de Portugal
  2. Includes Taça da Liga
  3. Appearances in Segunda División B relegation play-offs

References
  1. "Pepelu amplía su contrato con el Levante UD hasta 2021" [Pepelu extends his contract with Levante UD until 2021] (in Spanish). Levante's official website. 24 June 2014. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  2. "Caicedo resuelve la eliminatoria" [Caicedo solves the tie] (in Spanish). Marca. 15 December 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  3. "Pepelu, cedido al Hércules" [Pepelu, loaned to Hércules] (in Spanish). Super Deporte. 14 August 2017. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  4. "El Levante UD y el CD Tondela acuerdan la cesión de Pepelu" [Levante UD and CD Tondela agree the loan of Pepelu] (in Spanish). Levante UD. 26 July 2019. Retrieved 26 July 2019.
  5. "PortuGOAL Figure of the Week: Natxo González guides Tondela to traditional final day heroics". PortuGOAL. 27 July 2020. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  6. "El Levante UD y el Vitória Sport Clube acuerdan la cesión de Pepelu" [Levante UD and Vitória Sport Clube agree the loan of Pepelu] (in Spanish). Levante UD. 8 September 2020. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  7. "Alessio Lisci da con su fórmula" [Alessio Lisci makes it work with his formula] (in Spanish). Diario AS. 27 February 2022. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  8. "Pepelu y el Levante UD renuevan su vinculación por diez temporadas" [Pepelu and Levante UD renew their link for ten seasons] (in Spanish). Levante UD. 9 June 2022. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  9. "Comunicado oficial | Pepelu" [Official announcement | Pepelu] (in Spanish). Valencia CF. 8 July 2023. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  10. Pepelu at Soccerway
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