Aston Villa have reportedly agreed terms with Monchi to become our new sporting director, but talks are ongoing with Sevilla about his exit.
Villa have been busy making changes to the management infrastructure at the club over the past month, with Chris Heck appointed as V Sports’ President of Business Operations in May.
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The club then confirmed the departure of Christian Purslow on Monday as he stepped down from his role as CEO and director, thus leaving a void to be filled, while we’ve bolstered our scouting department in recent weeks too with the additions of Alberto Benito and Pablo Rodriguez.
While Heck is expected to oversee the business and commercial side of things at Villa, The Guardian now report that we’re closing in on appointing Monchi as our new sporting director, reuniting him with Emery after their time working together at Sevilla.
However, it’s added that while we’ve agreed terms with the 54-year-old, discussions are ongoing over the compensation fee due to Sevilla, with Monchi believed to have a £1.7m release clause.
Meanwhile, Fabrizio Romano has echoed that sentiment, suggesting that talks are now in the ‘final stages’ as we close in on an agreement.
It’s hoped that final hurdle can be overcome, as Villa were seemingly close to making a similar appointment last month, but Mateu Alemany ultimately opted to remain at Barcelona.
Nevertheless, it would be a vital addition to the management set-up if it materialises, as it adds further support for Emery in his plans to continue to strengthen the squad and make us increasingly competitive moving forward.
Further, given Monchi’s reputation and previous work at Sevilla which has led to him being regarded as one of the best in his role, it would represent an exciting change at the club in terms of how our recruitment might look in the coming years.
According to AS, Monchi’s departure to join us is now a matter of time as he is determined to leave, and Sevilla are now assessing the best exit plan for all concerned with regards to the release clause.
With all reports pointing to the same likely outcome, it could be an important moment for Villa as we look to make fundamental changes to try and take a big step forward and compete at the top level.