César Palacios

{{Infobox football biography

| name = César Palacios

| image =

| fullname = César Palacios Chocarro

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1974|10|19|df=y}}

| birth_place = Pamplona, Spain

| height = {{height|m=1.85|precision=0}}

| position = Midfielder

| currentclub =

| clubnumber =

| youthyears1 = 1987–1993 | youthclubs1 = Osasuna

| years1 = 1993–1995 | clubs1 = Osasuna B | caps1 = 43 | goals1 = 11

| years2 = 1994–2004 | clubs2 = Osasuna | caps2 = 272 | goals2 = 31

| years3 = 2004–2010 | clubs3 = Numancia | caps3 = 197 | goals3 = 9

| totalcaps = 512 | totalgoals = 51

| nationalyears1 = 1991 | nationalteam1 = Spain U16 | nationalcaps1 = 6 | nationalgoals1 = 0

| nationalyears2 = 1991 | nationalteam2 = Spain U17 | nationalcaps2 = 6 | nationalgoals2 = 1

| nationalyears3 = 1991–1993 | nationalteam3 = Spain U18 | nationalcaps3 = 19 | nationalgoals3 = 4

| nationalyears4 = 1992 | nationalteam4 = Spain U19 | nationalcaps4 = 5 | nationalgoals4 = 0

| club-update =

| nationalteam-update =

| medaltemplates =

{{Medal|Country|{{fb|ESP}}}}

}}

César Palacios Chocarro (born 19 October 1974) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played mainly as a central midfielder.

His career was solely associated with two clubs, Osasuna and Numancia, having captained the former a number of years. He appeared in 520 competitive matches across both major levels of Spanish football, amassing La Liga totals of 130 games and four goals in seven seasons.

Club career

A product of CA Osasuna's youth system, Palacios – born in Pamplona, Navarre – made his first-team debut on 6 April 1994 in a 1–0 home win against CD Tenerife, with the team eventually finishing the season in last position. He went on to become an important element of the squad in the following years, which included six Segunda División seasons; in 1999–2000, as they returned to La Liga after a six-year absence, he scored five goals in 40 matches, and also served as one of their captains.

For the 2004–05 campaign, Palacios joined Soria's CD Numancia, where he was an undisputed first-choice from the start, helping the side to return to the top flight in 2008.{{cite news|url=https://www.desdesoria.es/2013/05/29/breve-enciclopedia-numantina/|title=Breve enciclopedia numantina|trans-title=Brief numantina encyclopedia|newspaper=Desde Soria|language=Spanish|date=29 May 2013|accessdate=16 October 2019}} In late June 2010, after 52 league appearances over two seasons, 19 in the top tier in 2008–09, the 35-year-old retired from the game,{{cite news|url=http://www.marca.com/2010/06/12/futbol/2adivision/1276368936.html|title=Palacios se despide con victoria|trans-title=Palacios says goodbye with a win|newspaper=Marca|language=Spanish|date=12 June 2010|accessdate=2 January 2017}} becoming his last club's director of football.{{cite news|url=https://as.com/futbol/2011/06/20/mas_futbol/1308551233_850215.html|title=Palacios planifica una plantilla con menos futbolistas|trans-title=Palacios outlines squad with less players|newspaper=Diario AS|first=Luis|last=Romera|language=Spanish|date=20 June 2011|accessdate=18 April 2023}}

International career

Palacios represented Spain at various youth levels, but was never capped by the senior team. In 1991, he helped the under-17s to win the UEFA European Championship in Switzerland (then named under-16).

Three months later, Palacios played six matches in the category's FIFA U-17 World Cup, as the country finished in second position in Italy.{{cite web|url=https://www.si.com/soccer/2017/10/26/que-fue-de-los-finalistas-del-mundial-sub17-de-espana|title=¿Qué fue de los finalistas del Mundial sub17 de España?|trans-title=What happened to the Spanish under17 World Cup finalists?|publisher=Sports Illustrated|language=Spanish|date=26 October 2017|accessdate=18 April 2023}}

Honours

Numancia

Segunda División: 2007–08{{cite news|url=http://archivo.marca.com/edicion/marca/futbol/2a_division/cronica/es/desarrollo/1130189.html|title=El Numancia, campeón de Segunda división|trans-title=Numancia, Second division champions|newspaper=Marca|language=Spanish|date=1 June 2008|accessdate=16 October 2019}}

Spain U16