Manor Solomon revealed isolation and hate messages at Villarreal
The Portuguese-Israeli forward Manor Solomon described his spell at Villarreal as one of the worst experiences of his career. A lack of structure, hostility on social media and even a squad teammate who refused to greet him. Only four matches and one goal, but memories that go beyond the statistics.
A cold arrival and no support from the club
Solomon, 26, loaned by Tottenham to the Spanish club at the start of the second half of the 2023/24 season, said the welcome was practically non-existent. “In England, as soon as you sign, you get messages from the press officer, the team manager, the doctor. You are very well looked after. In Spain no one spoke to me, except the coach, who spoke English,” said the player.
According to him, he only managed to get organised because his agent, Pini Zahavi, had an Israeli associate based in Spain. Without that informal help, he would have been completely adrift. The detail is troubling: we are talking about a club that plays in the Champions League, not a second-tier team.
Hate on social media and tension in the dressing room
The conflict between Israel and Palestine left direct marks on the forward’s routine. “From the moment I signed, I received tens or even hundreds of thousands of hate messages,” Solomon reported. Threats against his wife, insults from the stands during the warm-up against Sevilla, an Israeli flag stained with blood raised in front of him by the opposing fans. Nothing was subtle.
Within the squad itself, there was a Moroccan player who refused to shake his hand or hug him after goals. “It is his decision,” the forward commented, without expanding on the subject. A silent but constant tension.
The coach’s distrust and an inevitable exit
The final blow came on the pitch. Solomon had scored and provided an assist in the previous games, but stayed on the bench during the match against Real Madrid without playing a single minute. “That’s when I realised the coach did not trust me,” he concluded. Before that, he had already been rested in the clash with Juventus, played during Yom Kippur, the most important holiday on the Jewish calendar.
In January 2024, the loan to Villarreal was ended and Tottenham passed him on to Fiorentina, in Italy, where he continued the season. Solomon was born in Israel but also holds Portuguese nationality, granted to descendants of Sephardic Jews under the Brazilian and Portuguese legislation of historical reparation. A complex identity that, apparently, weighed more than it should have during the months he tried to establish himself in Spain.
