Sergio Camello has scored seven goals in seven La Liga games for Rayo Vallecano, with only Barcelona’s Raphinha ahead of him across Europe’s top five leagues. In an interview published by the Guardian, the forward said he is enjoying a freer approach to football; the run is already his best campaign in the Spanish top flight, after previous league totals of five, three and three.

Camello said teammates have been quick to remind him of his place among the leading scorers. “I try not to think about it but my teammates keep reminding me,” he said, as Rayo’s striker described a start that has brought a new kind of attention.

Rayo’s current setting is a long way from a routine season at their home ground. Madrid’s council had declared the Estadio de Vallecas unsafe and unfit for purpose, forcing the club to play home matches in Leganés; supporters boycotted those games during the temporary move.

At the time of the interview, Rayo were due to return to Vallecas on Saturday 10 October, with the stadium set to reopen for a match at 2pm. Camello described the club as part of the neighbourhood rather than simply based in it, and said the closeness between players and local supporters was unlike anything he had experienced elsewhere.

Estadio de Vallecas in Madrid – Photo: 4theliberty / CC0

That connection helps explain why the forward’s account of his form extends beyond a change in finishing. He said the club’s problems are serious and should not be romanticised, but also pointed to the solidarity around Rayo and the way life in the barrio keeps players grounded.

Camello said the shift began with a change in how he approached the pitch. Conversations with friends, particularly his twin brother Gonzalo, and sessions in therapy helped him reconnect with the enjoyment he felt as a child playing football.

He said he had expected changing his mindset to be harder, but was finding that he could be himself, feel free and reconnect with what he could offer Rayo. He also said it had been a long time since he had enjoyed football in that way.