Sergi Palencia

Sergi Palencia Hurtado (born 23 March 1996) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Major League Soccer club Los Angeles FC.

Formed at Barcelona, where he was only a reserve, he has played in Ligue 1 for Bordeaux and Saint-Étienne.

Club career Barcelona Born in Badalona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Palencia started playing football for hometown club Badalona at the age of 8, moving to Barcelona's youth system, La Masia, in 2006. In 2013, he was compared to Bayern Munich full back Philipp Lahm by Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo.

On 29 March 2015, while still a youth player, Palencia was called up to the Barcelona reserve team for a Segunda División match against Tenerife, and played his first match as a professional hours later, starting in a 1–1 home draw. He and Álex Grimaldo were sent off on 25 April 2015 in a 2–1 win over Ponferradina at the Mini Estadi. Palencia played eleven matches in a season which saw his team relegated to Segunda División B, scoring his first goal on 31 May in a 5–2 home loss to Leganés.

On 10 August 2016, Palencia was named the B-team's captain. He achieved promotion back to the second level at the end of the campaign, and renewed his contract until 2020 on 5 October 2017.

On 16 August 2018, Palencia joined Ligue 1 side Bordeaux in a season-long loan deal. He played 31 total games, starting on 19 August in the season-opening 2–1 loss at rivals Toulouse in the Derby de la Garonne.

Saint-Étienne On 5 July 2019, Palencia joined Saint-Étienne for a fee of €2 million, with an additional €1 million in variables. Barcelona maintained 20% of his future transfer fee. On his debut on 1 September, a 1–0 loss at Marseille, he sprained his right ankle under a challenge from Jordan Amavi and was ruled out for six weeks.

On 28 September 2020, Palencia returned to Spain and its second division after agreeing to a one-year loan deal with Leganés. The following July, after playoff defeat to nearby Rayo Vallecano, his loan was extended for another year; he was out of Saint-Étienne manager Claude Puel's plans and the French club needed to balance the books.

Los Angeles FC On 2 February 2023, Palencia joined Major League Soccer club Los Angeles FC on a two-year deal with the option for a third, reuniting him with former Saint-Étienne teammate Denis Bouanga. He made his debut on 12 March, starting in a 4–0 home win over the New England Revolution.

On 25 February 2025 Palencia was accused of using discriminatory language by Colorado Rapids defender Chidozie Awaziem during the second leg of the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup match between the teams. On 4 March 2025 Concacaf released a statement saying "Following a thorough review of the match officials’ reports, available match footage and audios, and the respective positions of both clubs, the Concacaf Disciplinary Committee has cleared Los Angeles FC player Sergi Palencia of any discriminatory action.", going on to say, "it is clear to the Committee that the word reported by the Colorado Rapids in its official position to Concacaf was not used.

Career statistics

Club

Honours Barcelona U19 UEFA Youth League: 2013–14 Saint-Étienne

Coupe de France runner-up: 2019–20