If there’s one torero who’s made an impact in the early weeks of this uncertain 2021 temporada, it’s Emilio de Justo.

At the time of writing, the extremeño heads the escalafón with three corridas to his name - at Almendralejo, Sanlúcar de Barrameda and Villanueva del Arzobispo - and a tally of nine ears and a tail. To date, he has out-performed Antonio Ferrera, Miguel Ángel Perera, Enrique Ponce and Diego Urdiales, amongst others with whom he has appeared.

De Justo’s success won’t be of any surprise to those aficionados who have seen him torear in France in previous years. He has struck me as a torero in the footsteps of Iván Fandiño - someone who has had no easy start to his life as a matador de toros; a torero who therefore has experience of facing difficult animals and who can apply himself to a wide range of bulls; an exceptional swordsman; and a man with a determination to succeed. In Fandiño’s case, the figuras managed to avoid sharing the bill with him in important plazas throughout his abbreviated career, and one wonders if the same approach will be applied to de Justo, even though Simon Casas is now part of his management team alongside Alberto García.

Although Emilio had a spot in Sevilla’s delayed Feria de Abril - a fascinating mano a mano with Antonio Ferrera facing victorinos (now set for September 23) - he is entirely absent from Casa Matilla’s 9-corrida Feria de San Isidro at Madrid’s Palacio Vistalegre, Aranjuez’s Feria de San Fernando and the (admittedly foreshortened) ferias of Córdoba and Jerez. Currently, he has just two corridas confirmed for the rest of the year, at Leganés on May 9 alongside Ponce and Juan Ortega, and in Albacete’s Corrida de Asprona on 13 June, with Ponce once more and Perera. It remains to be seen if the likes of Roca Rey, El Juli, Morante de la Puebla and Manzanares will agree to share the bill with him too.

Assuming Emilio’s good form continues and his contract numbers increase, lovers of classical toreo, close passing and honest estocadas should make a point of trying to get to see him.