Monchi Told to Buy out Sevilla Contract Amid Manchester United, Madrid Rumours

Monchi, Sevilla’s revered sporting director, will reportedly have to pay a release of £3.8 million if he wants to leave the club, with Manchester United and Real Madrid said to be keen on acquiring him.

According to Pete Jenson of the MailOnline, despite the 47-year-old’s request to depart, the Liga side have stood firm and told him to honour his contract until 2020. Sport has stated it’s a clause he will not pay, and as such he’ll stay with Sevilla.

According to Matt Law of the Daily Telegraph, Everton are eyeing a swoop for Monchi and Sevilla manager Unai Emery, while Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur have been linked with a move for him in the past.

While it appears he will stay for now, the Guardian’s Sid Lowe doesn’t think the strong stance taken by Sevilla will see their man remain in place for long:

Monchi has been an influence in Sevilla’s wonderful recent success. He joined the football club in 2000 when the Andalusian side were in a precarious financial position, and they have won nine major trophies since, appeared in 14 finals and won the UEFA Europa League for the last three years in succession.

The recruitment undertaken by Monchi has been a vital part of the club’s rapid rise. Here is an XI made up of players the director brought to the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium, for a total of circa £23.5 million, and have since moved on:

GK	Andres Palop
RB	Dani Alves
CB	Martin Caceres
CB	Federico Fazio
LB	Adriano
DM	Christian Poulsen
CM	Ivan Rakitic
CM	Seydou Keita
AM	Julio Baptista
ST	Luis Fabiano
ST	Carlos Bacca

What has also been hugely beneficial to Sevilla in overcoming their financial problems is the profit made on the acquisitions. 

As reported by Lowe, notable examples include the €24 million made when selling Julio Baptista to Real Madrid in 2005, as well as the €17.5 million on Ivan Rakitic when he became a Barcelona player in the summer of 2014.

Per Tom Coast of Sport Witness, it’s estimated Monchi has made the club around €300 million in transfer profit.

FABRICE COFFRINI/Getty Images

Needless to say, he’d be a huge loss to Sevilla, and it’s understandable that the club would want him to stick around. As noted by Sport Witness, there has been talk of Monchi leaving previously. It also explained how he may go about freeing himself from his contract should he wish:

As talented as he is, Monchi may not be an ideal fit for teams such as United and Madrid. His skills for spotting a player and getting a deal done cheap would naturally make him an attraction for any side, but the two aforementioned clubs are two of the richest in world football.

They don’t need a particularly savvy director for that. A side such as Everton, who are not as rich as the teams noted, could potentially benefit hugely. 

Miguel Angel Morenatti/Associated Press

Monchi summed it up well in his interview with Lowe. “I know English clubs that are very professional, scouts everywhere, but the information they gather isn’t always applied,” he said. “Why? Because they have money. That enables them to take fewer risks: ‘I’m not going to discover [Seydou] Keita at Lens; let Sevilla do that and then buy Keita from Sevilla.'”

Football journalist Rafael Hernandez outlined the ways in which Monchi could potentially have a big effect at an illustrious football club:

A sum of €5 million may seem a small price to pay when it comes to a man who has been such a roaring success. Monchi has revolutionised the way in which the club goes about its business and has arguably been the best example of the director model working anywhere in world football. 

A move to United, Madrid or any other club would be a step out of Monchi’s comfort zone. Any team that can prise him away from the Sanchez Pizjuan would be better off in many aspects as a result, but his ties to the club could well see him stick around.