Aston Villa complete deal for renowned transfer chief Monchi
Aston Villa finalizes deal for renowned transfer chief Monchi as he reunites with Unai Emery
- Aston Villa finalizes deal for legendary Seville transfer chief Monchi
- The Spaniard will receive the title of president of football operations at Villa Park
- Monchi teamed up with Villa boss Unai Emery in his successful spell as Sevilla boss
Aston Villa have finally agreed a deal to hire legendary Seville transfer chief Monchi.
The Spaniard – full name Ramon Rodriguez Verdejo – has built a reputation as one of the best talent seekers of this century and will start work in July, pending work permit approval.
His title will be president of football operations and he will report to co-owners Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens.
Monchi and Villa boss Unai Emery have reunited after a successful spell at Sevilla that saw consecutive Europa League titles from 2014-16.
Mail Sport reported on June 7 that Emery had made Monchi his main target for a senior strategic role after the club was turned down by Barcelona director Mateu Alemany last month. With the negotiations proving complicated, Villa officials traveled to Seville earlier this week to seal the deal.
Aston Villa have signed a deal for Monchi to become chairman of the club’s football operations
Monchi (right) previously worked with Aston Villa manager Unai Emery at Sevilla
Under the new structure, Christian Purslow left as CEO on June 12 and Johan Lange, who had been sporting director, was given the title of ‘global director of football development and international academies’.
Monchi said: ‘I can’t wait to work with Unai Emery again, one of the best managers in football.
After enjoying so many years with Sevilla FC and winning several European trophies with my lifelong club, I look forward to building on the recent successes at Aston Villa.”
Monchi, 54, has played for Sevilla since 2000, except for a two-year stint with AS Roma from 2017-2019. He almost joined Arsenal in 2019, but opted to move back to Sevilla after leaving Roma.
Christian Purslow stepped down from his position as CEO of Aston Villa earlier this month
Under Monchi’s leadership, Sevilla made a series of excellent, low-cost purchases that were resold for a significant profit.
Brazilian star Dani Alves and Croatian midfielder Ivan Rakitic are perhaps the best known, although Villa paid £30 million for defender Diego Carlos a year ago – a £15 million profit for Sevilla.
He also developed a youth system that produced Sergio Ramos, one of the most successful players of the modern era.