Isco claims Sevilla's ex director of football, Monchi, assaulted him during a confrontation at the club's training ground in which he was grabbed by the throat.

Isco left Sevilla in December 2022 just five months after joining from Real Madrid. 

"As the [January transfer window] approached, I saw a lot of strange things within the club," Isco said. "They called my agent to look for a move, without talking to me first. When I found out, I went to speak to Monchi directly. I said 'Hey, I heard about this. I don't know if you want me or not... Be honest with me, and we'll sort it out.'

"After that conversation, Monchi was telling everyone that I wanted to leave, which wasn't true. He started calling me every day, me and my agent, bothering us to sign the termination [of the contract]. So I went and spoke to him again and I said 'Look Monchi, you're not being honest with me... I want to stay and you're saying I want to go.'

"I told him he was the biggest liar I'd come across in the world of football, and he assaulted me. He went for me, grabbed me by the neck, and we had to be separated. After that I didn't want to carry on there under any circumstances."

Isco has since been without a club after a January move to Union Berlin broke down, with the player citing last-minute changes to the terms of the deal.

"[I'm looking for] a project where I can have continuity, a team that wants to play football with a fun, possession style," he said. "I'm in a moment of my career where, after winning everything, I want to enjoy myself.

"I'll never prioritise money, if not I wouldn't have gone to Sevilla. I have and I've had a lot of offers from Qatar and Saudi Arabia, for large sums, but I want to play, to compete and have fun."