Despite having reservations about moving to North London from North West England where he was settled, Palacios agreed personal terms on a -year contract with Tottenham Hotspur, committing his future to the club until 2014.
Palacios was due to start the first match of the 2013-14 season away at Liverpool after being named by Mark Hughes in the starting line-up, but he pulled out after feeling ill in the warm-up and was taken to hospital where he underwent a "minor surgical procedure."[REF]